A bill to make Montana a “right-to-work” state went down to defeat March 1. SB 376, sponsored by Sen. Mark Noland (R-Bigfork) would have made it illegal for employers to agree to any union contract that required members to pay union dues or fees.
Such so-called right-to-work laws exist in 27 other states, including Idaho. But Montanans seem to want no part in it. Union members and supporters packed the state capitol Feb. 28 and filled a hearing room as the bill was being considered, with close to 100 testifying against it.
The next day, the bill failed 7-5 in a senate committee, and a later attempt to bring it to the floor also failed 18-32.
It was the third time a right-to-work bill has failed in the Montana legislature since 2021.
