Indiana Democrats Shut Down Right To Work Debate

Indiana House Democrats have skipped out again. Although they have not left the state the House Democratic minority has shut down business in the lower chamber by boycotting the session. They could now face fines of up to $1000 per day but it's not clear if the Republican Speaker Brian Bosma wants to go that route. Five Democrats are not boycotting which means if only two more Democrats decide to attend the House will have a quorum and able to debate the proposed right to work law. If the legislation is enacted it will be Indiana's second flirtation with right to work.

On March 1, 1957 Indiana became the 18th state to enact a RTW law. However, the law did not go into effect until June 25, 1957. During this nearly four-month period, many union leaders negotiated two- to three-year contract extensions that would not be null under RTW. Union leaders pursued a strategy of tying the law up in the courts, arguing that agency shop agreements that charged workers dues – but did not force them to be an actual union member – were constitutional. In 1959 the Indiana Court of Appeals sided with the unions, ruling that while compulsory membership was outlawed, the agency shop was permissible. This ruling left the RTW law essentially meaningless, and it failed to have much impact before being repealed in 1965.

Indiana has not been a hot bed of unionism for sometime. RTW may be a selling point toward attracting new industry but it is hard to imagine it doing more damage to the existing unions than they have already done to themselves.