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Published
March 6, 2007
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State Sen. Pat Ward, R-West
Des Moines, represents District 30 in the Iowa Senate. The
district includes West Des Moines, Clive
and Windsor
Heights. Ward can be reached at
281-3371 or pat.ward@legis.state.ia.us.
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'Fair share' proposal hurting Iowa
business development
BY PAT WARD
SENATE DISTRICT 30
The "fair share" proposal which would gut Iowa's Right to Work law hasn't even been considered yet, but the legislation's
chilling effect on economic development in the state is already taking place.
We've recently learned that several businesses looking to expand or invest in
new projects in Iowa are either putting the
brakes on those projects for the time being or abandoning them altogether due
to some lawmakers' efforts to repeal Iowa's
Right to Work status.
Companies such as L&L Builders in Sioux City,
which has outgrown its current facility, said it will now build its new
complex in Nebraska or South
Dakota because of several anti-business proposals - including
"fair share" - that are being considered in Iowa by the Democrat-controlled
Legislature. The firm's president, Bruce Lewis,
indicated that he believes that "fair share" supporters will not
stop until the Right to Work law is completely gutted.
Iowa's Right
to Work law has been on the books for the past 60 years. The
law bans forced unionism. It guarantees no worker in
Iowa can be
forced to join a union or pay union dues or fees in order to keep a job. The "fair share" legislation being considered in the Legislature would repeal that law
by requiring non-union workers to pay union fees for services provided by the
union in the workplace.
Economic development officials across the state point to other examples of
business expansion projects that are now in limbo, including:
- An out-of-state firm's plan to potentially make Iowa
its base for Midwest operations. The $50 million project would include jobs for 250-300
people.
- A nationally known cold storage company that has been considering locating
a $25 million facility in Council
Bluffs. The operation would
employ 50 people initially, up to 150 people.
- Another Sioux City
firm that is creating a joint biotechnology venture with a Korean company. The firm intends to pick a site within the next month
for a high-tech facility, but is now considering going outside Iowa.
I will not support any legislative proposal that would gut Iowa's Right to Work law and drive jobs
and businesses from our state. Instead, I'll
continue to fight for proposals that improve our business climate and
encourage job creation in our state.
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