Workers Celebrate Defeat of Harmful Right to Work Legislation in New Hampshire

Thousands of workers with Teamsters Union Local 633 and Teamsters Joint Council 10 are celebrating the defeat of harmful Right to Work legislation in New Hampshire.

In a major victory for working people, the middle class and the state’s economy, the New Hampshire House of Representatives today voted to “indefinitely suspend” consideration of a Right to Work bill. The vote means Right to Work legislation cannot be considered again in the state for the remainder of the two-year legislative session.

“On behalf of the thousands of hardworking men and women with Teamsters Union Local 633, I’m thrilled that the New Hampshire House of Representatives has rejected this misguided and harmful Right to Work legislation,” said Jeffrey Padellaro, Secretary-Treasurer/Principal Officer of Teamsters Local 633. “Our members and their families worked hard to send a message to the legislature that Right to Work is wrong for New Hampshire and today's vote is a victory for our economy and all working people in our state. We applaud the New Hampshire House of Representatives for voting against this damaging legislation that would drive down wages, weaken the middle class, threaten organized labor and hurt economic growth."

Workers and officials from Teamsters Union Local 633 and Teamsters Joint Council 10 worked hard for support and action on the Right to Work issue, urging members and people across New Hampshire to call their legislators and ask for a ‘NO’ vote.

“Right to Work is an attack on working people and we’re thrilled that this legislation has been soundly defeated in New Hampshire,” said Dennis Caza, President of Teamsters Union Local 633. “People around the nation envy our jobless rate in New Hampshire, and the defeat of this ill-conceived Right to Work legislation enables us to focus on initiatives that will grow our economy, attract new businesses and address rising income inequality.”

New Hampshire has the lowest unemployment rate in the nation, and currently there are more than 20,000 open jobs across the state. The Right to Work law provided no incentives to keep businesses in state. At the same time, it would have made it more difficult for New Hampshire to address its single biggest economic challenge: attracting enough workers to fill critical job openings.

“New Hampshire sent a very strong message today: Right to Work initiatives drive wages down and make it difficult for companies to attract employees,” said Sean M. O’Brien, Secretary-Treasurer/Principal Executive Officer of Teamsters Joint Council 10, which represents 22 Teamsters unions in New England. “We’re very gratified that the House saw this bill for what it is: an attack on working people and a drag on the economy. Teamsters have been working extremely hard to raise awareness of the problems with this Right to Work bill, and today’s vote is a major victory for organized labor and the middle class. We’re hopeful that the actions taken today will resonate for a long time and have an impact in other states considering damaging Right to Work legislation.”

Teamsters Local 633 represents more than 4,700 New Hampshire workers in a variety of fields, including thousands of men and women who serve the public each day. This includes UPS, public works employees, bus drivers, police, power plant and warehouse workers, airport maintenance, school principals, pipeline workers, race track employees and Anheuser-Busch workers. For more information, please visit www. http://teamsters633.com/