Was Missouri Governor Jay Nixon’s Right-to-Work Veto Influenced by UAW Campaign Contributions?
On June 4, Governor of Missouri Jay Nixon vetoed right-to-work legislation, which would end forced union dues payments, and was joined by UAW Local 249 members at a Kansas City auto assembly plant.
At the veto announcement, Gov. Nixon said, “This extreme measure would take our state backward, squeeze the middle-class, lower wages for Missouri families.”
“In addition, House Bill 116 [right-to-work] would drive down wages for all workers, regardless of whether such workers are members of a labor organization.”
But the opposite is the case. In a study produced by the Competitive Enterprise Institute, in Missouri, workers lost an estimated $3,040 from not having a right-to-work law on the books (for more data on how right-to-work states outperform forced-unionism states check out “An Interstate Analysis of Right to Work Laws“.)
New Bureau of Labor Statistics data show that states with right-to-work employment is growing at a faster clip than forced-unionism states. As described by the National Right to Work Committee, “2004 to 2014 private-sector payroll employment in Right to Work states grew by 9.9%. That’s roughly double the overall increase of 5.1% experienced by forced-unionism states.”
Despite Gov. Nixon’s statements and politicization of right-to-work with the accompaniment of organized labor at his veto announcement, a majority of Missourians support right-to-work. According to a survey conducted by the Missouri Alliance for Freedom and former Missouri House Speaker Tim Jones, 54 percent of Missourians support RTW against only 34 percent opposed. A recent Gallup poll found that 71 percent of Americans said they would vote for a RTW law.
Besides Gov. Nixon using the legislative process to gain political points, which is troublesome enough, a campaign contribution from the United Auto Workers raises questions of whether the legislative process has been tainted. As Connor Wolf at The Daily Caller reported:
Despite not running for office, Missouri Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon received a sizable campaign contribution Wednesday from a major union less than a week after killing a bill that would have ended forced union dues in the state.
Gov. Nixon received a $50,000 campaign contribution from the UAW. It is noteworthy that Gov. Nixon signed the veto surrounded by UAW Local 249 members.
Missouri Lieutenant Governor Peter Kinder condemned the campaign contribution and released a statement saying “it smells of more ‘pay to play’ politics by this administration.”
To investigate and bring to light if any foul play was involved in Gov. Nixon’s veto of right-to-work my organization, the Competitive Enterprise Institute, has filed a public records request that asks for any correspondence between the Governor and UAW to see if any evidence exists that the cozy relationship unduly influenced the Governor’s veto.