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With the stroke of his pen, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels on Feb. 1 approved legislation making his state the 23rd ‘right-to-work’ state in the nation. It was the culmination of months of efforts from the GOP majority in the statehouse, and it met with large-scale resistance from working Hoosiers who gathered in Indianapolis by the thousands to protest the measure.

IBEW activists, who have maintained a strong contingent at the capitol alongside pro-worker advocates from across the employment spectrum, expressed both dismay with the move and determination to continue the fight for fair wages in their state.

Said South Bend Local 153 Membership Development Coordinator Troy Warner:

The anti-worker supermajority in the legislature rammed this through against the will of the people – they changed the rules of procedure, they held hearings but would not allow not allow amendments and they showed that they are simply beholden to corporate special interests.

But these lawmakers have inspired our membership like I haven’t seen in years. Our members have seen firsthand how we’ve been literally shut out of the building. They’ve seen their own representatives dodge them in the hallways or ignore them outright. And they’ve personally experienced lawmakers acting hostile to them, patronizing them, telling them they don’t know what they’re talking about or telling them to go away.

For the legislature, I believe this will come back to bite them. For working people, the real work starts now of finding candidates to vote into office who will repeal this law.

Hundreds of Indiana IBEW members have demonstrated at the statehouse in the past few weeks, representing more than 20 locals in the state. Protests are expected to continue throughout the weekend, when the city will host the 46th Super Bowl.

AFL-CIO Building Trades President Mark Ayers said in a statement Wednesday:

To the proud men and women who build, operate and provide needed services throughout the Hoosier State, the state legislature has today put them on a path that will lead to lower wages, reduced safety on the job, less opportunity for skills training and less dignity and security in old age or ill health.

Misinformation and special interest money may have carried the day today, but the fight is far from over. The voices of working men and women in Indiana, and all across the nation, will not be silenced.Indeed, the sleeping giant that is the American middle class has been awakened.

Independent economists state that right-to-work laws reduce wages for workers – both unionized and nonunion – by an average of $1,500 each year. Right-to-work also lowers the likelihood that employees will get health care or pensions through their jobs.

Oklahoma was the last state to pass such a law in 2001. Since then, the Sooner State has seen the number of manufacturing jobs, and the number of new companies coming in, fall by one-third.

Since Daniels signed right-to-work into law this week, other states are taking note. In Ohio, state Attorney General Mike DeWine announced that a Tea Party group can begin collecting signatures to get right-to-work on November’s ballot. And a New Hampshire businessman announced that he is considering a gubernatorial run and would make a similar law his top priority, even after battles over right-to-work dominated recent sessions in the Granite State legislature before ultimately failing.

For more reporting on why right-to-work is wrong for working families, click here to read the cover story in this month’s Electrical Worker.

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In Face of Massive Citizen Opposition, Indiana Passes ‘Right-to-Work’ Law