Right To Work: What Is It?
By Jim Bauer
@porwest (94568)
United States
June 14, 2022 4:22pm CST
My boss likes to misuse the concept of "right to work," and I know I have corrected him on what a Right to Work state and law actually is. But it has not yet sunk in. And he said it again today.
He thinks Right to Work means that you can fire without cause.
Actually, it means nothing of the sort. What it means is that an employee has the right to work in a union shop and has the right to opt out of the union and still keep his job.
In states that are not Right to Work, an employee who holds a job in a union shop must join the union and pay dues if he expects to keep his job.
It is an important law and actually protects workers more in many ways because a worker who has opted out of the union still gets the "representation" mostly, but is not forced to pay dues to an organization that may not align with their own personal beliefs, causes and interests. In Right to Work states, forcing an employee to join a union is a violation of their individual rights.
I strongly support Right to Work laws. Now if I could just sink it into my boss' head what it actually is...
I'd be much happier.
The funnier part? We are in the state of Illinois, and we are not a Right to Work state. So not only is he incorrect on the meaning of the term, he is incorrect in his assertion that we are even a state with that law in place.
10 people like this
11 responses
@porwest (94568)
• United States
14 Jun 22
@NJChicaa Nope. The only right to work states are; Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
1 person likes this
@porwest (94568)
• United States
15 Jun 22
I am not sure why he is so confused by this actually. He's a pretty smart guy, but for whatever reason simply can't grasp this one. lol
Not even sure how "right to work" in his mind means what it means to him. The words don't even make sense in the context in which he is applying the definition.
@DWDavis (25805)
• United States
15 Jun 22
Your boss may learn the hard way if he up and fires someone without cause.
NC is both a right-to-work state and has it in the state constitution that public employees who attempt to take part in collective action commit a crime and face possible jail time.
2 people like this
@porwest (94568)
• United States
17 Jun 22
From what I have ascertained over the years, he has little understanding of how any employment law works. Part of it, and this is not a diss nor a ridicule of him, is that he has never worked for a "large" company before. In other words, he's always been in sort of mom and pop places (our company is a bit like that in the way it operates—in other words, the company I work for operates differently than any other company I have ever worked for).
When I started the concept of "safety" was almost completely foreign to him until I explained the liabilities of not following certain protocols.
I told him once that based on what I saw, one walk through by OSHA would have so many fines attached we'd have to close the doors.
Safety is better now. But still far down on the list of priorities unfortunately.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (183946)
• United States
15 Jun 22
How can he possibly think that it means the right to fire without cause? It's the RIGHT TO WORK.
2 people like this
@m_audrey6788 (58472)
• Germany
15 Jun 22
There`s a possibility that your boss just don`t want to know the real meaning of that 
1 person likes this
@RebeccasFarm (90741)
• Arvada, Colorado
15 Jun 22
Work is work..who came up with this right to work garbage
1 person likes this
@RebeccasFarm (90741)
• Arvada, Colorado
16 Jun 22
@porwest Yes in my days..mafioso..in my town where I lived and I had to interview with them to get the job..I was only 17 and shaking in my shoes..the union bosses
@porwest (94568)
• United States
15 Jun 22
I support "Right to work." I do not want to be forced to join a union and pay union dues if I don't want to, and no company nor law should force me to as a condition of employment.
To me Right to Work is simple common sense. Unions are mostly crooks anyway.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (122112)
• Gainesville, Florida
15 Jun 22
Florida is a Right to Work state. When I worked in municipal government, I would always explain to my employees what that meant and the fact they weren’t required to join the union. Of course the union always misinterpreted (purposely) the law to trick employees into thinking we could fire them at will if they weren’t in the union.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (122112)
• Gainesville, Florida
17 Jun 22
@porwest Wait…unions do that? Lol
1 person likes this
@porwest (94568)
• United States
17 Jun 22
@moffittjc I know. Shocking, right? lol
1 person likes this
@lovebuglena (45022)
• Staten Island, New York
15 Jun 22
Someone needs to educate him on this. Though something tells me he won't even listen.
1 person likes this
@lovebuglena (45022)
• Staten Island, New York
15 Jun 22
@porwest Maybe someone should explain it in lamens (not sure how to spell that) terms.
1 person likes this
@porwest (94568)
• United States
15 Jun 22
@lovebuglena Layman's. 
I made it as clear as I possibly could. If I made it any more layman than I already did I'd have to wonder how he passed kindergarten. lol
I made it as clear as I possibly could. If I made it any more layman than I already did I'd have to wonder how he passed kindergarten. lol1 person likes this
@Nakitakona (56484)
• Philippines
16 Jun 22
Your boss is asserting his right to fire his employee. For him, that his right to work.
1 person likes this
