Area legislators committed to ‘right to work’
Posted on Wednesday, December 07, 2011
State Sen. Travis Holdman, R-Markle, and State Rep. Matt Lehman, R-Berne, believe there will be middle ground as the General Assembly considers “right-to-work” legislation during next year’s short session of the legislature..png)
State Rep. Jeff Espich, R-Uniondale, isn’t quite so sure.
The three Republicans were at the Arts, Commerce, and Visitors Centre in Bluffton Friday for a legislative update sponsored by the Wells County Chamber of Commerce. With Senate President Pro Tem David Long, R-Fort Wayne, and House Speaker Brian Bosma, R-Indianapolis, both making “right to work” the GOP’s No. 1 legislative initiative this year, a fight could be brewing.
“Right to work” legislation disconnects union membership from hiring by a particular business. Union members see it as being anti-labor, particularly anti-union; others — including, officially, the Wells County Chamber of Commerce — say the legislation is necessary to bring jobs to Indiana in a competitive environment.
“I think we’re going to see ‘right to work’ moving forward,” Holdman said. He said “carveouts” — exempting construction workers, for instance — have been discussed and are possible in the final legislation. Those “carveouts” may ease some of the opposition, he said, but would not throw a unionized worker scare into prospective employers.
When “right to work” came up last year, the Democratic minority in the Indiana House of Representatives left the Statehouse for five weeks. In fact, they left the state, setting up shop in a hotel in Danville, Ill. That meant the House did not have a quorum for that time, and the work of the General Assembly was stymied. Democrats did not return until Republicans agreed to take the issue off the table.
Would that happen again? Holdman thinks the “carveouts” will help. Lehman says the fact that it has been announced by the leadership prior to the 2012 session will make a difference; last year, he said, the leadership decided to bring the issue up after the legislature had begun its work.
Espich, for his part, doesn’t hold out a lot of hope.
“I hope we have a forum to operate,” he said. “I’m not as optimistic as these guys are.”
Espich does see the issue as one of freedom of association, “the freedom to not be forced to join an organization you don’t believe in.”
All three men encouraged the 30 or so individuals present Friday to make their voices heard if they supported the legislation. “Labor organizations are not shy,” Holdman said. “You’ve got to take a stand or you’re just wasting your time.”
“Right to work” was one of several questions that Chamber members had submitted ahead of time and that were forwarded on to the legislators. Highlights of the other comments:
• Should County Economic Development Income Tax funds be used for anything other than strictly economic development projects? Espich said it was typical of legislation that is passe with a very narrow focus; eventually, he said, that focus gets blurred. He said if anyone was upset with how CEDIT money is used, the people who decide how it’s used — the county commissioners, perhaps — should be told that the use is not proper. “When’s the last time any of you went before the commissioners and said you didn’t like the way the money was spent?” he asked. Only Mike Row, Wells County’s economic development director, raised his hand.
• Will more money for training and development grants be made available? “It’s just a matter of money,” Espich said. Money used for one purpose — such as training and development grants — can’t be used for something else. “To give companies a break, it costs the state money,” he said. Espich, who is chairman of the Indiana House of Representatives’ Ways and Means Committee, noted that Indiana’s economy is improving — and therefore tax revenues are rising. “Our economy, as bad as it is, is one of the best in the nation,” he said. Still, he said, current projections said it won’t be until 2013 until the state’s tax take is as good as it was in 2008.
• The statement was made that the continuation of unemployment benefits means that employers can’t find workers; there’s no incentive to get off of unemployment. Lehman said he favors a tiered system — the longer people are on unemployment, the less money they receive.
• Regarding the Affordable Health Care Act, Lehman — who is an insurance agent — says that the regulations right now are “in flux” and that the entire act is now before the Supreme Court. Even if it is not declared unconstitutional, he said, the regulations may not be put in place until after the 2012 elections, even though they’re supposed to go in effect Jan. 1, 2013.
• Can more be done to provide educational opportunities to prepare our youth for the workplace? Lehman said stuents today seem to be lacking in communication, math, and work ethic. “We’re losing that skill of talking to people,” he said. He cited a statistic that 60 percent of people between the ages of 18 and 24 admitted that they pretended to respond to a text message or to return a phone call “to avoid having a conversation with someone.”
Espich also put a wide focus on educational problems. “We have a lot of problems in our society, and our school systems are reflective of our society,” he said. Parental involvement with students is lacking.
• How can Indiana avoid the financial pitfalls that have befallen other states? “We are going to continue to live within our income,” Espich said. He cited many statistics that show Indiana is among the national leaders in economic growth is among the national leaders in economic growth.
Article by Dave Schultz, courtesy of the News-Banner
Posted in General News
