Union workers lobby lawmakers on constitutional amendment

Montpelier, VT – State lawmakers heard from union workers on a proposed amendment to the state constitution that would ensure Vermonters’ rights to labor organization and collective bargaining.

While unions are allowed in Vermont, this legislation would protect workers rights against any future threat to unionization.

The State Senate passed the proposed constitutional amendment earlier this month. If implemented, it would guarantee Vermont workers the right to join labor organizations and negotiate wages, hours, and working conditions.

The House Committee on General and Housing discussed Proposal Three on Tuesday. Members of several labor unions representing construction, carpentry, plumbing and other trades spoke at the hearing to share how unions have improved their working conditions.

“I’ve had that experience of going through the union and what it can offer,” said Kim Hokanson of the North Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters. “For all the women in the room it levels the playing field which is awesome right, so the training is there, the education is there, safety and all these things that everyone else has said, but it also levels the playing field, that my pay is the same as the person sitting next.”

Many described how a union allowed them to grow professionally and personally, allowing them opportunities that they might not have had otherwise.

“As a lifelong Vermonter and 20-year union member, I cannot stress enough the benefits of union membership,” explained Alex Potvin, member of the Local 693, New England States Pipe Trades Association. “They have not only paved the way for me to raise a family and have a fulfilling career in the mechanical field, but also allowed me to remain a resident of this great state.”

Elizabeth Medina, Executive Director of the Vermont Labor Council was also in attendance, who said that improving workers’ rights helps everyone, not just union members.

“I really think it’s important to support unions and support the right to organize because they offer so much to workers not only who are in unions but workers everywhere and community members at large,” Medina said.

Proposal Three will not be put to a vote this biennium, however, as Vermont state law requires constitutional amendments to be passed in two separate bienniums.

If the proposal is moved forward through the House Committee on General and Housing and the House itself, it will be set aside until 2026. At that point, lawmakers will revisit the proposal, when it will be eligible to go before voters in the November 2026 election.

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