Sometime this week, Michigan could become the 24th state to adopt the so-called “right to work” laws that in 23 other states stop workers from having to pay union dues as a condition of employment.
The law doesn’t stop workers from joining unions; it just stops the unions from forcing workers to pay dues.
The labor unions view the laws as a way to cripple the power of unions to organize and represent workers.
The other side of the question is that the laws make a better business climate.
The thinking is that weakening unions will strengthen commerce and make Michigan more competitive in the race to attract new companies and businesses.
The Michigan action is helped by Republican majorities in the Michigan House and Senate and the GOP Gov. Rick Snyder. The GOP House majority will go from 18 to 8 in January, so there is a push to change the law now.
It is not the sort of action that is likely in Hawaii, but it shows the precarious nature of labor relations.
Hawaii, according to a U.S. Department of Labor report, is the nation’s third-most unionized state.
Between 2010 and 2011, Hawaii had a slight increase in government employees who are union members, while the total number of those in unions declined by several hundred because of a decline in the private sector union jobs, according to the feds.
So officially, 21.5 percent of Hawaii’s workforce is unionized, amounting to 112,756 union workers.
J.N. Musto, executive director of the University of Hawaii Professional Assembly, has more than 32 years as head of UHPA, and is the state’s longest-serving public union leader. He cautioned that Hawaii is not going to go the way of Michigan.
“There is no spillover here. Hawaii is Hawaii. It is its own entity,” said Musto, adding: “There is no political reason to do it here.”
But, Musto continued, even if the mainland move does not eliminate unions in Hawaii, it will be an attack on unions’ ability to function.
It is the sort of action that will alarm unions in Hawaii and will be used in future elections to separate union voters from GOP candidates.
Here in Hawaii, some Republicans, such as former Lt. Gov. James “Duke” Aiona, have campaigned against Hawaii’s public unions with no success. But, unions have used GOP attacks on labor as a reason to deny the Republican Party any real representation.
For Hawaii Republicans, the issue may become more nuanced, as it is expected that the seven GOP state House members will form a coalition with Democratic Rep. Joe Souki to run the House.
Calls from conservative Hawaii Republican Party members to endorse the Michigan action will obviously not pass into law.
“It is wrong to conclude that this is the death knell of unions, and in Hawaii it is even more difficult,” said Musto.
In fact the biggest reaction probably would be that anti-union legislation in the House would easily be enough to upset whatever delicate balances are at work in the state House.
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Richard Borreca writes on politics on Sundays, Tuesdays and Fridays. Reach him at rborreca@staradvertiser.com.
