Unlike the right to work definition as a human right in international law, U.S. right-to-work laws do not aim to provide a general guarantee of employment to people seeking work but rather guarantee an employee's right to refrain from being a member of a labor union.
The Right to Work principle–the guiding concept of the National Right to Work Committee (NRTWC.org) and the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation (NRTW.org) — affirms the right of every American to work for a living without being compelled to belong to a union.
The right to work is the right of everyone to have the opportunity to gain their living by work that they freely choose or accept. Enshrined in Article 6 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, it encompasses both an individual and a collective dimension.
Right-to-work laws affect whether you can be required to join a union or pay dues. Here's what these laws actually mean for your rights at work. A right-to-work state bars employers and unions from requiring workers to join a union or pay union dues as a condition of keeping their job.
If a state is a right-to-work state, this means that there are laws that allow residents to work without being forced to join a union or pay union fees. Right-to-work laws are hotly debated. Proponents argue that the laws allow personal choice and freedom for the worker.
National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation Right to Work States ...
Right-to-work law, in the United States, any state law forbidding various union-security measures, particularly the union shop, under which workers are required to join a union within a specified time after they begin employment.