Right to work questions for Rep. Cookson

To the Editor:

This letter to the editor is to respond to Republican Rep. Steve Cookson's op-ed piece on the right to work laws. Here are a few questions I would like Mr. Cookson to answer for me: 1. If you could get rid of all unions public and private would you?

2. In your article about the right to work issue, and I quote, "The biggest issue is the freedom for the workers to join or not join a union." If it's about freedom for the workers, what language did you put in the bill to protect workers that want to belong to a union? I'm talking about harassment from the employers that does not want a union at their work area. A prime example was the Mid Continent Nail factory that was originally started in Malden, Mo. owned by Republican Sen. Libla. The workers legally voted to unionize, and Republican Sen. Libla shut the plant down and moved to Poplar Bluff, Mo.

3. In your article you stated that employers pay higher wages in right to work states. So explain to me that employers actually want to pay higher wages.

It's amazing what you can find on the Internet. Just type in right to work, and with a few clicks, a Lowe's home improvement store video will pop up and show middle managers on step-by-step on what to do to stop people from forming unions. Type in Chamber of Commerce, one of the United States biggest backers of right to work laws. This is what I found ironic. To be a member in good standing in the chamber of commerce and receive all benefits, you have to be up to date on your dues.

Mr. Cookson, what about the freedom for the chamber members that want to get all the benefits without paying any dues? Another thing I found on the Internet, I Googled unemployment broke down by states. Missouri has 5.2% unemployment, Mississippi which is one of the first right to work states in America, is 7.3 % unemployment. By Rep. Cookson's logic, all right to work states should be over flowing with good paying jobs. Really right to work bills are just a Republican led agenda to weaken unions and keep wages suppressed for employers. What most Missourians would like their Rep. to work on, is bills to keep companies from closing their plants in Mo. and moving to China. Rep. Cookson I challenge you to go to Wal-Mart and try to find anything made in the USA. You will have to look long and hard. Here is something else I found ironic.

Did anybody else see Republican Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder on KFVS-TV last week, telling us he needs a raise? Eighty one thousand dollar a year is hard for him to live on. I'm thinking about having a car wash for him.

I'm sure I'll have a letter to the editor of the Sikeston paper also. Republican Holly Render will have an op-ed piece about the right to work law. I can assure you it will be almost word for word with what Mr. Cookson stated. It's almost like somebody behind the scenes is telling them what to say.

In closing, everybody in this area is for economic growth. It doesn't always have to be on the backs of the working men and women of Missouri. Call and write your Rep. and tell them to stand up for the worker, and reject anything to do with right to work laws.

Republican Rep. Cookson I am looking forward to a reply to these questions.

Respectfully,

Philip Christian

Malden, Mo.