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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (March 20, 2015)
PAGE 8 | March 20, 2015 | NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS Madore floats right to work resolution in Clark County, Wash. VANCOUVER, Wash. — Clark County Commissioner David Madore has introduced a right- to-work resolution that would give county employees the abil- ity to receive all of the protec- tions and benefits of their union without having to pay for it. The resolution states in part that “it shall be the policy of Clark County ... to advocate against requiring county em- ployees to join a union as a con- dition of employment.” Madore’s proposal follows efforts last year to qualify local ballot measures in the Washing- ton cities of Blaine, Sequim, Shelton and Chelan. In each of those cases, city councils re- fused to permit the ballot meas- ures to go forward, having been advised by city attorneys that the measures violated state law. The measures were spear- headed by the anti-union Free- dom Foundation, based in Olympia. Union officials be- lieve the ultra-conservative group helped Madore draft the resolution in Clark County. “It’s a right-wing plan to de- fund unions to make us go away,” said Shannon Walker, president of the Southwest Washington Labor Council. Walker said Madore, a multi- millionaire, is couching the Clark County resolution as nothing more than “guidance” from the Commission. “Why would the Commis- sion be ‘guiding’ county agen- cies to do something that is ille- gal under state law?” she said. Walker said the resolution, if passed, sets up the county for a costly legal battle. The Columbian newspaper reported that Madore has only introduced the resolution during the commissioners’ Wednesday board time meetings, when they discuss recent and upcoming business. At press time, the Labor Council was calling for union members to denounce the reso- lution during the public com- ment period of the March 17 Commission meeting. A second resolution drafted by Madore — and opposed by labor — calls for opening col- lective bargaining of county contracts to the general public. ...Right to work bill filed in Washington From Page 1 Columbian newspaper called for a state right-to-work law in a March 5 editorial entitled “Right to Work = Freedom.” Right-to-work bills have been introduced in Washington and a number of other states, but nowhere besides Wisconsin are they considered likely this year to get past both legislative chambers and the governor. But starting in 2014, some right-wing groups began en- couraging cities and counties to pass local right-to-work ordi- nances, even though those ordi- nances are likely to be struck down by the courts. The Na- tional Labor Relations Act al- lows states to enact right-to- work statutes, but says nothing about cities or counties. So far, at least 10 counties in Kentucky have passed local right-to-work measures; the Kentucky AFL-CIO has filed suit in federal court to strike them down. And in Southwest Washing- ton, Clark County Commis- sioner David Madore has intro- duced a right-to-work resolution that would apply to county em- ployees (see story on this page). Right-to-work laws aren’t what they sound like: They don’t guarantee the right to a job. Rather, they bar any union contract from requiring that workers pay dues or the equiva- lent. In other words, “right-to- work” laws give union-repre- sented employees the “right to work” under the terms of a union contract without paying any of the union’s costs. The laws are intended to produce economically weak unions, and to create workplace rancor be- tween dues-payers and shirkers. Tentative contract could end Steelworkers strike United Steelworkers (USW) reached a tentative agreement March 12 with Royal Dutch Shell. If ratified, the contract —a “pat- tern” for the industry—could end a strike at 14 other oil companies. Over 6,550 Steelworkers have been on strike since Feb. 1. The ten- tative four-year deal at Shell includes safety improvements and raises of 2.5 to 3.5 percent a year, and maintains the current health care plan cost-sharing ratio. It also addresses concerns about per- formance of routine maintenance by contractors rather than union members. Local bargaining continues at oil refineries operated by BP, Tesoro, LyondellBasell, and Marathon Petroleum Corp.
