Right to Work’s Wide Job-Growth Advantage Cuts Across Regions

### Western, Southern and Midwestern States Rank in Top Eight For 2003-2008 Employment Gains

For many years, U.S. Labor Department data have shown that states with Right to Work laws on the books have far faster private-sector job growth than states that do not protect employees from federal policies authorizing the termination of workers for refusal to pay dues or fees to an unwanted union. The latest available data show Right to Work states retain a wide job-growth advantage.

Between 2003 and 2008, private-sector jobs in the 22 Right to Work states increased by an aggregate 9.1%. That’s 2.5 times as great as the relatively small increase in private-sector jobs experienced by the 28 non-Right to Work states over this period. (See the tables on pages three and four for details.)

The correlation between a state’s Right to Work status and job growth is extraordinarily strong. Among the eight states with the biggest gains in private-sector employment over the past five years, seven – Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, Idaho, Arizona, Texas and North Dakota – have Right to Work laws. These states are located in the West, the South, and the Midwest. Montana was the only non-Right to Work state to rank among the top eight – and its job gains were outpaced by all five of the Right to Work states in the West, where Montana is located.

Meanwhile, seven states had private-sector job growth of less than two percent or negative job growth over the past five years. All seven – Indiana, Maine, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio, Rhode Island and Vermont – are forced-dues states.

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