Some people don’t realize that forced unionism still exists in some sections of our USA, and sadly, Maine is one of those areas. However, we now have a chance to break that stranglehold on Maine by passing a bill that’s under consideration by our legislators in Augusta.

Forced unionism is just a workplace environment where some or all of the employees are required to financially support a labor union as a condition of employment. Workers are not forced to actually join the union; they are just forced to give money to a union in order to keep their job.

Countless Maine state workers are in this very situation. It seems to me that forced unionism is actually a lot like slavery before it was outlawed, and they share the same definition: the involuntary subjection to another or others.

The only way to end forced unionism in Maine is to pass a right-to-work law, which gives workers the freedom to choose whether to join or pay fees to a union, while also preserving their right to collectively bargain. Under this law, workers can no longer be forced to pay a labor union they do not support, just to keep their job.

L.D. 65, “An Act To Ensure the Right To Work without Payment of Dues or Fees to a Labor Union as a Condition of Employment,” is now under consideration in Augusta. The full details of this bill are posted at http://tinyurl.com/lrsav28.

The public hearing for this bill will take place Monday starting at 9 a.m. in Room 208 of the Cross State Office Building, which is next to the Capitol in Augusta. For more information, contact MaineRTW@yahoo.com.

Mark Turek

Randolph

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