Union Membership & RTW (Page 1 of 2)	
Union Membership & RTW	
Right to Work (RTW) States — On January 7, 2017, Kentucky 
Governor Matt Bevin sign a law making Kentucky a Right to Work 
state. States that became Right to Work states recently include West 
Virginia (2016), and Wisconsin (2015).  Today, there are 27 states in 
the United States that have Right to Work laws. 
In Right to Work states, workers have the right to decide whether to: 
1) Join the union at their work site and pay union dues; 2) Not join 
the union and, therefore, pay no union dues.  Employers are free to 
hire union or nonunion job seekers.  
Illegal laws — Closed shops or union shops  allow employers to 
hire union or nonunion job seekers, but all  new hires must become 
union members and  must pay union dues  or lose their jobs.  Closed 
shops and union shops are illegal  in U.S. since the Taft-Hartley Act 
of 1947.  
Agency Fee States — are the remaining 23 states in the United States that do not have RTW laws.  Agency 
fee states allow employers to hire union or non-union job seekers.  Then, new hires are offered 2 choices: 
1) Join the union, become a union member, and pay union dues, or 2) Not join union but pay a reduced fee 
(less money) to the union.  The reduced fee is called "agency fee."  Workers who select to pay agency fee 
to the union instead of full union dues are called "agency fee payers." 
 Agency fee is sometimes call 
"representation fee." 
Unions spend money mainly on 3 activities:   1) Collective bargaining which is speaking for workers to 
employers to set pay rate, benefits, and working conditions).   2) Union contract maintenance which is 
making sure employers follow the contract.   (3) Political activities that is 
supporting candidates for offices such as school board, senator, or president.  
Agency fee payers are only pay for:  1) Collective bargaining and 2) Union 
contract administration.  This is why the agency fee is less money than full 
union dues.  
U.S. Supreme Court "Janus" Decision — New Union Law
On June 27, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court decided the case of Mark Janus (worker) versus AFSCME 
(union).  Mark Janus did not want to join AFSCME union or pay agency fee while working at as a child 
care worker for Illinois state.  The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that government workers, in all 50 states —
 
Now have the right to join or not join the union — and the right to not pay agency fee (also call
ed 
representation fee).  There are 4 types of government workers — 1)  federal government; 2)  state 
government; 3)  county government; 4)  city government.  
Government job titles include jobs such as fire fighters, police officers, teachers, social workers, librarians.

Union Membership & RTW (page 2 of 2)	
QUICK CHECK:
1. a) On what date did Kentucky become the 27th 
RTW state?  b) List 2 other states that became 
Right to Work states recently.
2.  List 2 rights workers have in Right to Work 
states.
3.  a) List 2 things new hires must do in closed or 
union shops. b) Are closed shops legal?
4.  a) List 2 choices new hires have in Agency fee 
states.  b) What is the reduced fee called?  
  c) What are workers called who select to pay 
the reduced fee rather than union dues?
5.  Define the 3 activities unions do:  a) Collective 
bargaining.  b) Union contract maintenance.  
  c) Political activities.  d) For what 2 activities 
do agency fee payers pay?
6.  a) What happened on June 27, 2018?  b) What 
did Mark Janus not want to do?  c) What did the  In 2020, about 14.3 million workers in the U.S. were members of unions. 
 This 
includes wage (paid by the hour) and salary (paid by the month) work
ers.  
Union members had average weekly earnings of $1,144, while workers who 
were not union members had average weekly earnings of $958.  Union membe
rs generally get higher pay 
than nonunion workers.   Percent of Union Members by State
Note: District of Columbia is not a state — also called Washington D.C.
Union Member Percent
Alabama (8.5%)
Alaska (17.1%)
Arizona (5.7%)
Arkansas (5.2%)
California (15.2%)
Colorado (9.0%)
Connecticut (14.5%)
Delaware (8.7%)
District of Columbia (9.3%)
Florida (6.2%)
Georgia (4.1%)
Hawaii (22.5%)
Idaho (4.9%)
Illinois (13.6%)
Indiana (8.3%)
Iowa (6.3%) 
Kansas (8.7%) 
Kentucky (8.0%)
Louisiana (5.3%) Union Membership Percent 
Maine (11.8%)
Maryland (11.3%)
Massachusetts (12.0%)
Michigan (13.6%)
Minnesota (13.7%)
Mississippi (6.3%)
Missouri (11.1%)
Montana (10.5%)
Nebraska (8.4%)
Nevada (14.6%)
New Hampshire (10.3%)
New Jersey (15.7%)
New Mexico (7.1%)
New York (21.0%)
North Carolina (2.3%) 
North Dakota (6.0%)
Ohio (11.9%) 
Oklahoma (6.2%)
Oregon (14.4%) Union Membership Percent
Pennsylvania (12.0%)
Rhode Island (17.4%)
South Carolina (2.2%)
South Dakota (5.6%)
Tennessee (4.6%)
Texas (4.0%)
Utah (4.4%)
Vermont (11.2%)
Virginia (4.0%)	
Washington (18.8%)
West Virginia (10.2%)
Wisconsin (8.1%)
Wyoming (7.3%)	
RTW States
Alabama
Arizona
Arkansas
Florida
Georgia
Idaho
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Michigan
Mississippi
Nebraska
Nevada
North Carolina
North Dakota
Oklahoma
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Virginia
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming	
U.S. Supreme Court rule for government work -
ers in all 50 states?  
7.  a) List 4 types of government workers.  b) List 
4 types of government job titles .  
8.  Define:  a) wage  b) salary
9.  What was average weekly earnings for:  
  a) Union workers?  b) Nonunion workers?  
  c) How much more per week do most union 
workers earn?  d) How much is this per year? 
(52 weeks in a year)    
10.  a) List 2 states with union membership over 
20%.  b) List 9 states with union membership 
  under 5%.
11.  a) What is the percent of union membership in 
your state?  b) Is your state a RTW state?
12.  Which listed in the table above is not a state?