Posts tagged economic incentives
Op-ed: Tennessee: The nation’s best right-to-work state
May 13, 2025 // Community Benefits Agreements might sound benign, but in reality, they have become a tool for politically motivated groups to extract money and influence on the taxpayers’ dime. These agreements often dilute or divert economic incentives by forcing businesses to commit funds to causes, organizations or hiring mandates or quotas that go beyond their agreed-upon economic obligations. This new law will block special interests from cashing in on taxpayer-funded incentives.
Commentary– Justin Hill: Protecting the Secret Ballot: A step forward for Mississippi’s workers and taxpayers
February 24, 2025 // this measure prohibits “neutrality agreements,” which can unfairly prevent employers from sharing information with their workers. Employees deserve the right to hear both sides of the issue rather than being presented with only the union’s perspective and talking points. Transparency is critical for workers to make informed decisions about their future. This legislation applies only to future economic incentives and union organizing efforts. It does not impact existing unions, current economic incentive agreements or subcontractors. Compliance with this law is straightforward and does not conflict with federal labor regulations. When a similar law was challenged in Arizona, the courts upheld the state’s right to protect the secret ballot process.
The UAW’s strike on General Motors might haunt workers
December 4, 2024 // The United Auto Workers at General Motors received a 33% pay raise as a result of last year’s strike, but GM announced another round of layoffs on Nov. 15. GM laid off 1,000 employees worldwide, including 507 workers at its Warren, Michigan, location. The news comes after GM’s tech center in Warren lost 634 jobs in August, and the company cut 1,314 jobs from its Orion plant in December, two months after the strike ended.
Builders and Contractors of Alabama president Jay Reed: New union secret ballot incentives law ‘critical to free enterprise’
August 23, 2024 // “This law does not prevent workers from joining unions. It gives employees the right to vote privately and be free from pressure campaigns from labor unions or anyone else. Secret ballots are a foundational principle in our nation, and workers deserve the right to make their own decisions freely,” Stadthagen said.
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee Signs First-in-the-Nation Law Linking State Economic Incentives to Private-Ballot Protections
May 17, 2023 // “Thanks to the bold leadership of Governor Bill Lee, Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson, House Speaker Cameron Sexton and the entire state legislature, many workers across Tennessee will now be guaranteed the right to a private vote on unionization,” said Senior Labor Policy Advisor Vincent Vernuccio. “This historic bill is a testament to the bipartisan commitment of Tennessee legislators to protect workplace freedom in the Volunteer State,” said Vernuccio. “Just like Tennesseans enjoy the right to privacy at the ballot box, Tennessee workers deserve the right to decide union representation through a secret ballot vote. The right to vote is just as important as the right to work.”
Tennessee legislators moving bill to block incentives for companies that allow unions via ‘card check’
March 8, 2023 // Both companies that are going into the West Tennessee Site, Ford and SK Innovation, have agreed to the majority card check method, which the National Labor Relations Board allows. In that approach, a majority of workers sign a document or "card" agreeing they want the union to represent them. It's favored by unions, including the United Auto Workers. Union organizers can get workers' names, addresses, email and cellphone numbers to contact and seek their signature on a card, including go to a worker's home to discuss that. The legislation's aim is to prevent that.