Right to Work States, I Have a Few ?'S

K.:

Virginia is a Right to Work state. Thank God!! However, there are still unions here.

ETA: YES! Employees still have rights in RTW states. That's ignorance to think otherwise...the RTW means that I can CHOOSE to be in a union or NOT...I do NOT have to be in one.

I personally think all unions need to be done away with as they have outlived and served out their original purpose - to protect workers - now? They don't protect the workers - they protect the bosses....

If my husband was union - I'd be VERY happy to see him out of it!! No more union dues, no more "boss" telling him what to do, how to vote, etc.

I know a couple of people in Southern Virginia that left the union - and thought their lives improved dramatically.

I've never been a big union fan. I've always fared better when I worked for non-union and smaller companies because I can be considered on an individual basis instead of lumped in with some group.

The thing I hate the most about unions is when the membership goes on strike, all the workers suffer with strike pay, but the union reps and big wigs still pull in their huge salaries while the membership suffers. I would never join a union unless it was stipulated that the big wigs' paychecks to into the strike fund when there is a strike and the big wigs get the same strike pay as the membership. That way they will be more motivated to resolve issues.

I lived in Las Vegas when the hotel workers went on strike. I watched many people lose their cars and homes. I will never forget that and will not let that happen to me!

One thing your husband may want to consider is what will happen to his benefits should he leave the union. My husband worked with unions in NY State, but always from the management side, and he doesn't have anything good to say about them.

Also he should bear in mind should the company decide to do layoffs and he is not a member of the union, his job would most likely be cut first.

I don't have experience with unions.

What I do know is that a RTW state means that employees have no rights. We can be terminated for any reason or no reason with no warning. The only thing stopping this from happening more is that some companies are afraid of having to spend money defending law suits - if the person they terminated is in a protected class. They won't lose the suits, it will just cost them money.

I don't have any experience with unions, but both of my parents owned their own businesses when I was growing up. My dad had his own remodeling business and my mom was an art teacher(not at a school). My dad got jobs based on his bids and the excellent work he did. He kept busy and had enough money to raise 6 kids. He got to chose when to work and what jobs he wanted to take- he loves being his own boss.
With the right to work states, it's not that the employees don't have any rights- they do, they have the right to quit anytime they want. They have the right to disagree with their boss and go out and work for one they agree with. Most companies have a 90 "trial"period where you can quit without a 2 week notice and they can fire you without a reason other then "it's not working out". After that most companies require documentation of offenses before they will let you go unless it is something like theft. I really like the 90 day trial period because it takes that long to see if you are a good fit for where you are working. You may hate it or just not like it very much or the company can see that you just aren't putting forth the effort to do much more then the minimum requirements. You don't want people working for you who hate their job or that do just enough to get by. I think when you aren't obligated to hire someone just because they are in a union, but you hire someone because they love what they are doing, it benifits both the company and the employee. I think unions had their place, but I think they are now what they once fought against. Good luck!
~C.

Unions are still allowed in right to work states.

I live in Virginia: there are many positivie and negatives to being in a "Right to Work State".
I'm sure you can imagine what the positives may be, but keep in mind a major negative to many people. The fact that you may be fired at any time and the company does not actually have to have a reason. Now, if you find out that it has anything to do with Age, Sex, Race, Religion, Political prefference, etc..then you may fight it (but this is rare).
Also my experience with Unions in VA (and knowing many people who have either at one time belonged to a Union or still does)..they rarely gain employment. Because the unions require companies to pay you __ amount, most companies rather hire the man not in a Union and is willing to be paid less. Being part of a Union may be awesome, if you found yourself in a decent job with security (like working for the government...you cannot just be fired...they have HUGE proccesses to go through) but these days, with this economy...bieng part of a Union is going to do more harm than good for you.

Good luck with everything.