WASHINGTON – Being forced to pay union dues as a condition for employment could be a thing of the past through legislation cosponsored by U.S. Senators Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Thad Cochran, R-Miss., to restore workers’ rights.

The Mississippi Senators are original cosponsors of the National Right to Work Act (S.391), which would strike provisions from the federal National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and Railway Labor Act (RLA) that now force an estimated 8 million workers in many states to pay dues to a labor union as a requirement for landing and keeping a job.

“No law or agency should create financial barriers for American workers,” Wicker said.  “We should end the practice of forcing Americans to pay union dues as a requirement of employment.  This measure would protect workers’ rights while ensuring that Americans can keep more of what they earn.”

“Employment should not be contingent upon the payment of mandatory union dues.  Workers should have the freedom to choose what they spend their hard-earned dollars on without the fear of unemployment,” Cochran said.  “I look forward to this legislation being given fair consideration as a workers’ rights measure.”

By striking forced union participation provisions in the federal NLRA and RLA, S.391 would guarantee workers have a choice to refrain from paying dues, joining or assisting labor organizations.  Mississippi is one of 24 states with right to work laws that protect workers from paying mandatory union dues.  In states without right to work laws, workers who refuse to pay union dues risk not being hired or terminated.

The National Right to Work Act, introduced by Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.), has been referred to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.  Cochran and Wicker, who have supported similar legislation in the past, are among 14 original cosponsors of S.391.