Wisconsin Legislature to Take Up "Right to Work" Legislation

Anyone who didn't think this was going to be on the agenda had to be living in fantasy land.  Many other states have moved toward this direction and with Act 10 passing and showing additional support since it's passing, you knew "Right to work" legislation had to come up quickly.

JS Online:

Madison — After years of seeking to change the subject, the top leader in the state Senate made clear Thursday that lawmakers in his house would debate the issue of so-called "right-to-work" legislation within weeks.

Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald (R-Juneau) told conservative talk radio host Charlie Sykes of WTMJ-AM (620) that he was considering so-called "open shop" legislation to prohibit employers from striking deals with unions to require workers to pay dues. It was a marked shift from the general election rhetoric of Republicans in recent months who have said that the issue is a distraction.
"We can't tiptoe through this session without addressing this. We're not tackling this six months from now. We're not tackling this a year from now...there's no way we avoid this issue. We have to deal with this issue right now," Fitzgerald said.

His comments come as conservative state Rep. Chris Kapenga (R-Delafield) vowed this week to introduce a bill to do that and as a longtime activist in the state with ties to national groups has started an organization to promote the legislation.

Fitzgerald said that he would be willing to have the Senate vote first on the measure. Given that the support for it is even stronger in the state Assembly, that was a powerful statement that support among conservative lawmakers for the idea could be too strong to stop.