PA House Democrats Want You to Pay Striking Workers

Originally published at RealClearPennsylvania

Publicly funding people not to work is too radical a policy even for California Gov. Gavin Newsom. Though he has every reason to curry favor with labor unions during his shadow campaign for president, Newsom vetoed legislation that would have allowed workers in a labor dispute to qualify for unemployment compensation. In support of his veto, Newsom cited the unfeasible cost of paying striking workers to stay home. 

In Pennsylvania, however, Democrats are undeterred by the indefensible. They want to put this radical experiment to the test with House Bill (HB) 1481, which passed the state’s Democratic-led House of Representatives in November. HB 1481 would give striking union members access to unemployment compensation. Under current state law, individuals who choose to be unemployed—like striking workers—don’t qualify for unemployment benefits. HB 1481 would remove this exemption for union members, effectively forcing taxpayers to subsidize labor strikes. 

Read more at RealClearPennsylvania