What the PRO Act Means for Workers
BY CHARLICE BYRD
Cherokee County is on the move. According to the Cherokee County Chamber of Commerce, our county has tripled in population in the past three decades, attracted good jobs and kept taxes low. But, thanks to the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act being debated in Congress (www.congress.gov/ bill/117th-congress/house-bill/842/text), that could change. The act likely would make businesses and workers easier prey for labor union organizers. Georgia is a right-to-work state. The PRO Act could benefit union bosses over small businesses. One provision would void Georgia’s right-to-work law, according to www.gachamber.com/pro-act-georgia. This law protects workers from being forced to join a union or to pay union dues as a condition of their employment. Many believe this law has been a key ingredient of our local and regional economic success. According to the National Institute for Labor Relations Research, right-to-work states have stronger economic growth and faster private sector job growth than states in which union membership is compulsory. If the PRO Act were to become law, Cherokee workers could lose their right to a secret ballot in union elections. Instead, the PRO Act would mandate a system called card check, in which workers’ preference for, or opposition to, forming a union would be public. It’s not hard to envision a scenario under which this provision could lead to intimidation tactics by overzealous labor organizers, especially when coupled with a separate provision that puts personal worker information into the hands of those same organizers (www.gachamber.com/pro-act-georgia). Many workers in the gig economy, such as ride-share drivers or freelance writers, appreciate the flexibility of jobs that allow them to ratchet their hours up or down depending on their lifestyle. The PRO Act would reclassify them as employees, likely eliminating thousands of these jobs in Georgia alone. Currently, the PRO Act is stalled in the Senate. Cherokee County employers and workers need our U.S. senators to support the interests of job creators and workers by opposing the PRO Act in whatever legislative form it takes. Thank you all for allowing me to represent Georgia House of Representatives District 20. It is an honor to work for you and this great state. If you have any feedback, call 404-557-2218, email charlice.byrd@house.ga.gov or engage on Facebook.
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Rep. Charlice Byrd represents District 20 in the Georgia House of Representatives. charlice.byrd@house.ga.gov.
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