CHARLOTTE, N.C. — It's estimated that only 2.6% of North Carolina workers belong to a union. With Labor Day approaching, local unions are encouraging workers to get active and organize.
"We just have to be louder and work harder to let workers know that they have the right to collectively bargain. Even in North Carolina, which is a right-to-work state, you still have federally protected rights to work in concerted action with your co workers to make things in your workplace better," Ashley Hawkins, President of the Charlotte-Metrolina Labor Council, said on WCNC Charlotte's Flashpoint.
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As a right-to-work state, workers in North Carolina and several other states, aren't legally required to join a union or pay union dues. The law makes labor unions less powerful than in states where workers are required to join a union, or at least pay union dues.
"Workers are living in some of the worst economic conditions we've seen in you know, decades. And part of the solution to that can be coming together and forming a union at your job," said Hawkins.
Even thought their participation has wavered over the years, support for organized labor remains strong. According Gallup, two-thirds of Americans approve of labor unions.
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Flashpoint is a weekly in-depth look at politics in Charlotte, North Carolina, South Carolina, and beyond with host Ben Thompson. Listen to the podcast weekly.
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