“Mike Pence has waged repeated attacks on working Hoosiers as governor and will without a doubt continue the attacks alongside his anti-worker running mate Donald Trump…’” said Brett Voorhies, president of the Indiana State AFL-CIO.
Indiana became a “right-to-work” (Under the law, unions cannot collect fees from non-members who take advantage of unions’ grievance or bargaining services, and are essentially providing these services without compensation) state under Pence’s predecessor, but Pence has worked to make sure it stays that way.
Two local judges ruled that the law violated the state’s Constitution, causing the Indiana Department of Labor to stop enforcing the law briefly. Pence defended its legality. And in 2014, Indiana’s Supreme Court upheld the state’s right-to-work law.
Pence has also taken a stand against raising the minimum wage to livable levels, opposing a bill that would have raised Indiana’s minimum wage from $7.25 to $8.25. Instead, Pence signed into law a bill prohibiting local governments from forcing businesses to raise minimum wages unless mandated by the state or federal government.
Pence also signed a law repealing Indiana’s common construction wage, leaving wages on publicly-funded construction projects at the mercy of free-market pay scales rather than in the hands of local boards composed of taxpayers or contractors.
In a further blow to workers’ rights, Pence lent his support to the Trans-Pacific Partnership, saying that the deal would allow Indiana to “enjoy increased market access and fairly compete on the world stage.”
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