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Right to Work Legislation Introduced Again- But is There Momentum in Pennsylvania?

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For years, right to work legislation has failed to reach a final vote in Pennsylvania.  But   supporters are trying again this session, bolstered by approval of similar laws in states like Michigan and Wisconsin.

Representative Daryl Metcalfe and other lawmakers rolled out the Pennsylvania Open Workforce Initiative with the backing of a number of right to work advocates.  The Butler County Republican says he encourages anyone who believes in liberty to contact their legislator and demand that they sign on to “this common sense policy that will help create jobs in Pennsylvania and restore a very basic American freedom”.

The measures would give more workers the right to opt out of union membership.

Justin Davis, legislative Director of the National Right to Work Committee, says people should not be forced to join a union. He says good unions don’t need compulsory unionism and bad ones don’t deserve it.  He says it’s time for Pennsylvania to join the ranks of 24 other states where workers enjoy the freedoms and protections a right to work law affords.

Unions call them right to work for less laws.   Wythe Keever, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania State Education Association, Pennsylvania’s largest teacher’s union, disputes claims that such laws benefit workers.  He says in states that have these laws, the average pay for workers is lower, workers are less likely to have employer sponsored health care or any kind of retirement benefits.

PA School Districts

State PSSA Scores Are Lower, Officials Point to Alleged Cheating Crackdown

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The state Education Secretary says the results of the 2011-12 PSSA tests reflect actual student performance after an investigation of exams from three previous years.  Compared to the 2010-11 results, the latest Pennsylvania System of School Assessment scores declined by 1.4% in math and 1.6% in reading

These are the first tests since the state started taking a closer look at alleged cheating in some districts.   State Education Secretary Ron Tomalis says investigations continue in nine districts and charter schools and the department expects to file complaints against more than 100 educators suspected of misconduct in administering the tests.

Only 49% of the state’s public schools met Adequate Yearly Progress. Many districts fell short due to new federal regulations that require high school graduation rates to be factored in to the calculation.  Statewide, the number of students performing at or above grade level for math was 75.7%, for reading it was 71.9%, for writing it was 73.2%,   and for science it was 61.4%.

Tomalis calls the results a reset.  He says if you take out schools under investigation, achievement was flat.   The investigation has already resulted in increased test security measures, including monitors in schools that were under investigation.

The state’s largest teacher’s union  is also pointing a finger at the Corbett administration for the lower PSSA scores .  The Pennsylvania State Education Association says most educators know tampering or cheating is wrong, but it’s also wrong for the Corbett administration to use a small number of incidents to claim a statewide decline in test scores.

Spokesman Wythe Keever says the previous administration invested in public schools and students made steady gains, the Corbett administration cut nearly one billion from state funding  and standardized test scores declined.  He  says the need to restore funding to public schools is urgent.