RIGHT TO WORK UNIONIZATION

Right-to-Work
Virginia is a Right-To-Work state. Virginia's Right-To-Work law prohibits a closed shop where employers must hire only members of the contracting union, and the union shop where all employees must be members of the union as a condition of employment. Moreover, the Virginia statute prohibits the use of force, violence, or intimidation to induce or attempt to induce any employee to quit employment or refrain from seeking employment. It also prohibits a person from engaging in picketing by force or violence, singly or with others, in such a way as to obstruct free passage to or from any premises. This translates into reasonable wage scales, no obstructive work rules, management-labor cooperation and very few work stoppages.

Weak Union Activity
According to a 1996 survey by the Virginia Peninsula Economic Development Council, less than 4% of the area's manufacturers are unionized companies, and only two of these firms were organized since 1976. In both cases, the union was already established with the parent firm. Attempts to organize non-union plants have consistently been rebuffed by workers in Newport News. There have been four successful decertification elections since 1977. During the past twenty years, Newport News has experienced only two industrial strikes--one in the apparel industry over non-payment of wages and the other against Northrop Grumman Newport News (Newport News Shipbuilding), with the union settling for a contract that achieved only limited results.

Unionized Companies on the Virginia Peninsula