Dallas Morning News Editorial Writer Coined the Term "Right to Work" on Labor Day in 1941

Dallas Morning News editorial writer William Ruggles (pictured above) "thought every American had a right to work. He used those words in an editorial on September 1, 1941 (Labor Day) asking for a 22nd amendment to the U.S. Constitutional guaranteeing the right to work with or without union membership. In so doing, he coined a phrase and sparked a movement that would change the labor landscape in America," according to a recent story in the Dallas Morning News as part of its 125th anniversary celebration.   Here are some excerpts from the article:

“The answer seemed to me to be an amendment to the federal Constitution that would be so clear and unequivocal that no jurist could argue against its meaning,” Ruggles said later. Texas passed its right-to-work law in 1947.

Although that constitutional guarantee never materialized, 22 states enacted legislation patterned after the editorial. These laws prohibit agreements between trade unions and employers that make membership and payment of union dues or fees a requirement of employment even if the company is operating under union-negotiated bargaining agreements. 

Love them or hate them, economists, historians and lawyers agree that right-to-work laws were the leading factor in the Sun Belt’s success. “Economic growth in places like Georgia and Texas was driven by the combination of the right to work and the cost of labor,” says Al Niemi, dean of the Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University. “Since the right to work dictated the cost of labor, right to work was the single most important driver.”

HT: Jeff Perry