A state circuit court judge ruled one of two lawsuits challenging Indiana’s Right to Work law can move forward.
Attorneys for the state had filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing Right to Work legislation does not require unions to do anything and federal law places the burden on unions to represent all workers, regardless of whether they’re union members.
Bryan Corbin, spokesman for the Indiana attorney general's office, says the state’s motion was only the first attempt at defeating the suit.
“The state’s position continues to be that the statute is constitutional and now we can pursue additional avenues for upholding the law’s constitutionality.”
The United Steelworkers filed the lawsuit. Jim Robinson, district director, says the victory is just one hurdle to overcome.
“The state could only win that if they could show there’s no possible way we had a case and the judge said, ‘Yes, there’s a legitimate argument here,’ so now we’re going to move forward to reaching the actual argument.”
Robinson says Right to Work violates the Indiana Constitution’s provision prohibiting the state from requiring services without compensation. Both Corbin and Robinson say there is no timetable yet for the lawsuit’s next step.