Unions vow to fight on against the union busters

By BERRY CRAIG

AFT Local 1360

Kentucky unions vow to fight on after the Republican-majority legislature passed a “right to work” law and repealed the prevailing wage.

“The labor movement is needed in Kentucky now, more than ever,” said State AFL-CIO President Bill Londrigan in a statement.

“The Kentucky State AFL-CIO’s purpose is to improve the lives of working families and bring fairness and dignity to the workplace. No laws written by corporate CEOs, ALEC, the billionaire Koch Brothers, and extreme right wing politicians will change our mission or weaken our resolve!”

All but a handful of GOP lawmakers voted for the two measures. Every Democrat opposed them.

Londrigan called RTW and PW repeal “some of the most extreme anti-workers bills in the nation today, slashing wages and silencing working people across the commonwealth.”

He added that “the Kentucky labor movement is an expression of the hopes and aspirations of working families and predicted “working families in Kentucky will come together to demand prosperity and fairness for our state.”

Londrigan warned that unions and their supporters “will demand a Kentucky that works for all Kentuckians, not just wealthy CEOs and out of state corporations. We will not let these politicians and out of state corporations turn back the clock on Kentucky's hard working men and women.

“We will work to make sure this message is heard in the living rooms and workplaces from Paducah to Pikeville and everywhere in between.  We will continue to inform our members that elections have consequences, and union members and their families will hold our elected representatives accountable for these egregious, harmful actions taken today.”

RTW and PW repeal topped tea party Republican Gov. Matt Bevin’s anti-union agenda. He is expected to sign both bills quickly.

With his signature, Kentucky will become the 27th “right to work” state.