Is it true that "right to work states are against unions?"

Biggirl71 · Jun 26, 2011

Texas is a right to work state and they are totally against unions. However, I am from Wilmington, Delaware and I come from a union-heavy family so I believe in the need for unions. When you are in a right to work state that does not like unions, you run the risk of being terminated if your employer finds out you have joined a union.

The truth is, in Texas if your employer doesn't like the fact that you drive a red car, they can fire you. So needless to say, any union activity would have to be on the down-low and then in the end, having joined a union may not pay off the way they promise because they aren't allowed in. A union rep cannot just walk into a hospital and start recruiting members. Hospitals have the right to ask them to leave because they do not accept outside vendors.

Having said all of that, my husband is a life-long Teamster and when he moved to Texas from Detroit, he continued his union membership. At that point, he had the option to stop paying his union dues and continue to reap the rewards of union membership. Although he continues to pay his dues, some of his co-workers have stopped. Because Texas is a right to work state, they do not enforce the union dues.

I hope that clears up some of your questions. I have very limited knowledge of nursing unions because they are not readily available to me. Maybe you could fill me in on how they work. . .?

Thanks. . .

virgo,student nurse, CNA · Jun 26, 2011

Thank you Biggirl 71, for clearing up some of my questions. I truly apprecaite it. The way you explained it to me really makes sense after all of the stuff I googled today. I have a union and LIKE having their backing in case, the need arises. This brings to light very interesting news.

Chico David, BSN, RN · Jul 1, 2011

Let me clarify a few points here:

What a "right to work" state means is simply that an agreement between an employer and a union requiring that workers join a union (or pay a fee in lieu of joining) is illegal in that state. 22 states have such laws, many concentrated in the South and the non-coastal West.

For most private employees, the law is otherwise similar across the United States. In all 50 states people have a legal right to join or form a union. And, also in all 50 states, the law is so poorly enforced that workers are routinely fired for attempting to form unions in their work place. And, also in all 50 states, some unions and some groups of workers do succeed in forming unions despite that.

But it is a lot harder is some places than others. The National Nurses United and some of its affiliates have been quite busy and fairly successful organizing in RTW states in the last couple of years - having won representation elections at about 6 hospitals in Texas and around a dozen in Florida. But many unions won't even try to organize in RTW states. And only time will tell how successful NNU will be in winning and maintaining quality contracts in those states.

As another item, there are two main groups of workers whose right to unionize is not governed by the federal law: public employees - those who work for state and local governments - and agricultural workers. Separate state laws govern their right to unionize or not and differ in every state.So in relatively liberal, strong union states the public workers may have an easier time organizing than private sector workers. In some other states, they may not be allowed to unionize at all.

virgo,student nurse, CNA · Jul 1, 2011

Thank you for your response, I really appreciate all the information.

Boomer32 · Jul 11, 2011

You are getting some misinformation here.

"Right to work" means that you have the right to work without being forced to join a union. Unions exist in right to work states. You have the right to join them, but you don't have to. In some states, if your workplace is unionized, you HAVE to join the union and you do not have a choice. You also have to pay the union dues. Even if you disagree with how the union spends the dues.

Rob72, ASN, RN · Jul 11, 2011

Yeah, that's a tough issue. From experience, unions have unfortunately become the shelter of those whose motto is, "Can't and Won't". Can't fire them, and they won't do the work. Not always true, but... For me, Right to Work means I'm not contributing major funds to political campaigns and groups I'm strongly opposed to for the priveledge of having a job.

Certainly, I concede- I believe Nursing would be a stronger, more vaible profession with a more solid professional structure. I'm just not sure the traditional union organizational model has any validity left.