VOTE NO: Amendment 1

On the ballot in November is an amendment to the Tennessee constitution to enshroud "Right to Work". The language is intended to make one think it's a good thing, however, this policy which is already in the Tennessee law is against labor and the working class.

Amendment 1 is being promoted by a well-coordinated network of out-of- state billionaires, super PACs, and corporate special interest groups that are down-sizing, shipping jobs overseas, and hiding profits offshore to avoid paying the same taxes families and small businesses must pay. “Right to Work” laws allow the rich and powerful to continue to rig the rules against working families and in this election cycle the underlying goal is very evident: to use traditionally low voter turnout in mid-term elections to pass a drastic constitutional amendment. Backers of “Right to Work” and Amendment 1 in Tennessee claim that the law protects workers against being forced to join a union, however, federal law already makes it illegal to force someone to join a union.

Our constitution is a sacred document that should only be amended in very rare circumstances, not to include every item on a political party’s wish list. Corporate special interest groups, big business, and greedy politicians already have too much power in our state. Working families deserve to have their needs addressed, too.

In today’s economy, employers and employees should be working together to create safe, good-paying jobs instead of the government trying to manage the private sector.

“In our glorious fight for civil rights, we must guard against being fooled by false slogans, such as ‘right to work.’ It is a law to rob us of our civil rights and job rights. Its purpose is to destroy labor unions and the freedom of collective bargaining by which unions have improved wages and working conditions of everyone…” - Dr. Martin Luther King

View the interview online at the Tennesseean with Billy Dycus, president of Tennessee AFL-CIO Labor council who discussed this issue on labor day. We have labor unions and the labor movement to thank for such things we take for granted today like a '40 hour work week" and "weekends."

Did you know that "According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, on average, workers in states with “Right to Work” laws make nearly $9,000 (15.2%) less annually than workers in other states ($50,174, compared with $59,163)" In addition, "in “Right to Work” states, health care is often a privilege and rarely a right. In 2018, Tennessee suffered the third-highest increase in uninsured people in the nation, trailing only Arizona and Alabama (both have “Right to Work” laws in their constitutions). "

This can be a confusing issue because of the wording. This truly concerns all citizens for our economy and well-being as a society. Please see below some key points shared with us from the Tennessee AFL-CIO:

General Information About “Right to Work”

• “Right to Work” laws take away our freedom to join together to negotiate a fair return on our work.
  

• “Right to Work” is about freedom only in this way: It’s about taking away the freedom of working people to join together.
  

• “Right to Work” is wrong. It is an unnecessary, unfair government overreach into the workplace that distracts from the real and serious issues facing our state, including low wages and a lack of good-paying jobs.
  

• “Right to Work” laws give even more power to big corporations at a time when CEO pay has grown hundreds of times higher than what the average worker makes.
  

• Workers deserve real rights and real freedom, including the freedom to have a voice at work without fear of retaliation.
  

Brief History of “Right to Work” Laws

• “Right to Work” laws originated during the Jim Crow era to prevent people of color from having equal rights. These unfair laws are still on the books. Click here to learn more.
  

• “Right to Work” laws are an insult to all working people, but especially to workers of color, who have historically formed strong unions to earn fair wages and dignity on the job.
  

• Unions help raise the wages of women and workers of color– whose wages have historically lagged behind those of white men. Black and Hispanic workers get a larger boost from unionization than their white counterparts. (Economic Policy Institute)
  

• Communities of color will lose the most if “Right to Work” laws continue to spread.

Disadvantages of “Right to Work” Laws

• The true burden of “Right to Work laws” ultimately falls on working families.
  

• Nine of the 10 states with the lowest percentage of union membership (including Tennessee) are “Right to Work” states. All of these states rank well below the national average in terms of middle class earnings.
  

• Median household income in states with “Right to Work” laws is over 15% less than in other states (U.S. Census Bureau)
  

• In states with “Right to Work” laws, nearly 30% of the jobs are in low-wage occupations (Bureau of Labor Statistics).
  

• Tennessee is at the top of the list for the number of minimum wage jobs and has a poverty rate of nearly 14% (U.S. Census Bureau)
  

• On average, workplace death is 41% more likely in “Right to Work” states than in free-bargaining states (AFL-CIO).
  

• On average, 13.3% of the population overall (18.5% for children) are below the poverty line in “Right to Work” states compared to 11.2% of the population overall (15.8% for children) in free-bargaining states. (U.S. Census Bureau)
  

• Workers do not choose to relocate because of a state’s “Right to Work” law. National data shows that most people move from one state to another to find more affordable housing, to meet family needs, to retire, to access better weather, or for any number of other reasons unrelated to work.

General Information About “Right to Work” in Tennessee

• Tennessee’s “Right to Work” law has been on the books since 1947.
  

• Tennessee is an at-will employment state. “Right to Work” laws in any state strip workers from having a voice in negotiating wages, benefits, and safe workplaces.
  

• Anyone in Tennessee without a union contract can be fired without cause (including pregnancy, injury, etc.) with NO due process. No questions asked.
  

• If a union represents a particular workplace, it is legally required to provide the same representation to everyone- whether they are a dues-paying member or not.
  

• Even though a lot of money is spent to defend non-members whose rights are violated under a collective bargaining agreement, “Right to Work” laws prevent the union from collecting any sort of fee for services from non-members. This is freeloading.
  

Sanctity of the Constitution

• The Tennessee Constitution is a sacred document that should only be amended in very specific circumstances.
  

• Attempts to enshrine this harmful law in the state constitution is a waste of taxpayer dollars on a partisan crusade designed solely to score political points.
  

• Amending the Tennessee Constitution to cater to the policy wish list of either political party sets a dangerous precedent.
  

• If Tennessee’s “Right to Work” law is enshrined in the state constitution, this effectively opens the door for any issue to be included in this sacred document.
  

• Policy and laws should be set by the members of the Tennessee General Assembly.
  

• This effort demonstrates misplaced priorities; some legislators are more worried about an imagined threat than improving the quality of life for hardworking Tennesseans.
  

• It’s easy to amend the state constitution, but it’s much more difficult to reverse that decision.

Please share any of the images on your social media and reach out to all of your friends in Tennessee to ensure we can block this attempt to alter our constitution against working people.