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Indiana Passes Anti-Union ‘Right to Work’ Bill

(Reuters) – The Indiana state Senate on Wednesday gave final approval to a new law allowing workers at unionized businesses to avoid paying union dues, the last major legislative hurdle to making Indiana the first “right-to-work” state in the nation’s manufacturing belt.

No state has approved a right-to-work law since Oklahoma a decade ago, and Indiana is being closely watched nationwide during a presidential election year. The Senate vote was 28 to 22.

Governor Mitch Daniels was expected to sign the bill Wednesday.

Sad day for organized labor.

Michigan House Passes Anti-Union Labor Bill

Lansing— A House committee on Tuesday passed a package of labor reform bills blasted by critics as anti-union measures.

The legislation would add county and municipal employees to the law that prohibits public school teachers from striking and set steep fines for public sector strikes and lockouts.

The bills also would make it easier for employers to get an injunction to stop picketing and require employers to get annual permission from employees to deduct union dues from their paychecks.

The package approved by the House Oversight, Reform and Ethics Committee, chaired by Rep. Tom McMillin, R-Rochester Hills, would have to be passed by the full House and Senate and be signed into law by Gov. Rick Snyder.

An overflow room equipped with a large TV screen was set up next to the hearing room in the House Office Building in Lansing to accommodate the large number of union members who attended today’s meeting.

“This is an unwarranted assault on working people,” said Jerry Skinner of Farmington Hills, a retired electrician and member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 58, who attended the meeting. “They’re doing it in Indiana and they’re doing it here. We’ll be telling them what we think in November.”

The package is supported by Republicans and business owners who say reforms are necessary to limit the cost and disruption of strikes.

GM to Boost Volt Production

General Motors Co. plans to boost production for its range-extending electric car, the Chevrolet Volt, to 16,000 vehicles this year, and 60,000 in 2012, the company said today.

The Detroit carmaker had originally planned to build 15,000 Volts this year, and 45,000 in 2012, but strong demand for the battery-powered car has prompted the company to churn out more.

The announcement comes just two weeks before a four-week shutdown at its Detroit-Hamtramck plant, where GM builds the Volt, for retooling.

The Truth About Union Electricians in IBEW Local 58.