In all of the excitement about the top of the ticket, it seems that state elections and the content of ballots gets lost. As a result, it seems that voters who don’t pay a lot of attention to content after selecting their candidates, may just mark the remaining wordy content with a “yes” without taking the time to understand the consequences. So, I was hoping to bring an important issue to the attention of Virginia voters about a sneaky, craftily worded ballot measure to make a change to the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Constitution.
As most Virginians are aware, Virginia has been a right to work state since 1947. (Right to work law, § 40.1-59 of the Code of Virginia.) Now, State Senator Mark Obenshain (R-Rockingham) and Virginia State Republicans want to enshrine “right to work” in the Virginia Constitution. So, they got together and spent a quiet, two-year process and in February of 2016 passed resolutions in both chambers without a vote from a single Democrat! Because of the way they slid this through, Gov. McAuliffe did not get to see it on his desk.
Here it is;
PROPOSED
CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS
QUESTION 1
Should Article I of the Constitution of Virginia
be amended to prohibit any agreement or
combination between an employer and a labor
union or labor organization whereby (i)
nonmembers of the union or organization are
denied the right to work for the employer, (ii)
membership to the union or organization is
made a condition of employment or
continuation of employment by such employer,
or (iii) the union or organization acquires an
employment monopoly in any such enterprise?
Yes
No