Deluge of anti-worker legislation rains down on Missouri’s middle-class

Violent storms aren’t the only threat to Missouri residents this spring. Workers there are facing the same politically-motivated attacks launched by Republicans in states from coast to coast. This week the Missouri House took another step closer to passing a “paycheck deception” bill, which requires unions to get annual written authorization for members’ voluntary contributions to political action funds. The bill, SB 202, was sponsored by Sen. Jason Crowell (R-Cape Girardeau), who has sponsored other anti-worker bills including right-to-work and a measure that would gut Missouri’s minimum wage law. Republicans also want to abolish prevailing wage laws and overturn child labor laws.  

It’s ironic that Republicans are on a mission to silence the voices of the very people who are first responders to natural disasters like the tornadoes that ripped through the state last weekend and record floods that are now engulfing homes along the Black River.  

Missouri union members have been working around the clock to rebuild after the storms and to help those in need. Each day before and after work UAW Local 2250 member Mike Melson has been volunteering his time to cut fallen trees, haul away debris and distribute bottled water in Maryland Heights where a tornado struck last weekend.  

Along with members of the UAW and other unions, Melson’s also working to hold the line on SB 202. He says the bill is not about protecting union members but about eliminating the only remaining opposition to corporations’ political power. “I think it’s obvious what’s really going on. If they can break us down, there’s no one left to stand up to them,” said Melson. “It takes a lot of money to get people elected. Individuals can’t give what corporations can.”  

UAW members are also continuing to lobby lawmakers to oppose SB 1, right-to-work legislation that is temporarily halted in the Senate. Melson expects the bill to come back at any time. Proponents say eliminating workers’ right to collective bargaining is necessary to create jobs, but studies show states that have enacted right-to-work have lost jobs.  

Taking away workers’ rights has nothing to do with fixing the economy, but about lowering wages for corporations, says Melson. “I think it’s 100 percent political. It’s not about creating jobs. It’s about breaking us down.”