Rocky Mountain News Editorial

1/20/07

Workers will pay dues - or else

      A major change to Colorado labor law is being rushed through the legislature as though the unions were afraid the business community might wake up in time to try to stop it. Not necessarily in the Democratic House or Senate, where passage seems greased, but at the governor's desk.

      Bill Ritter is a Democrat too, of course, but he needs to avoid being blindly partisan if he wants to keep Colorado's economy humming - and he does. Unfortunately, even Ritter appears committed to signing the bill. Is this a signal regarding the "economic development" policy Coloradans can expect under his administration? We hope not.

      We also hope the governor understands that the issue is far bigger than a tussle between unions and business. It's a question of elementary fairness: A minority of workers should not be able to dictate that everyone pay union dues as a condition of employment, and yet that's what this bill would allow.

      The measure, House Bill 1072, would effectively eliminate a part of Colorado's 64-year-old Labor Peace Act and make it easier for unions to collect union dues (or their equivalent) from workers who declined to join.

      Colorado has a unique place in national labor law. It is not one of the 22 right- to-work states (all in the South or mountain West), but neither is it one of the 27 states where so-called all- union agreements are legal. It's in the middle.

      In a right-to-work state, the law prohibits labor contracts that make union membership (or at least financial support of the union) compulsory. Even though Republicans have controlled both houses of the legislature for many years, attempts to make it a right-to-work state have all failed.

      In Colorado, once a bargaining unit has been established at a company by an employee vote, a special second election is needed if the union wants an "all-union agreement" in which every worker - union member or not - must pay dues. In that second election, 75 percent of the employees voting, or 50 percent plus one of employees eligible to vote - whichever is higher - must approve the all-union agreement. The second election is by secret ballot, in order to minimize the effect of pressure from either the union or the employer.

      Thus all-union agreements are harder to achieve - as they should be. Without the current requirements for the second vote, a bare majority of those who ratify an all-union contract - who may represent only a minority of all the workers - can compel every employee to pay into the union or be fired.

      With union dues playing an increasing role in Colorado election campaigns through small-donor committees, you can understand why labor is pushing for HB 1072.

      The bill, sponsored by Rep. Michael Garcia, D-Aurora, breezed through a House committee on a party line vote last Monday, just five days into the session, and was given preliminary approval on the House floor Friday.