Prairie State Wire

Gov. Bruce Rauner recently praised state representatives for voting against his veto of Senate Bill 1905, arguing in a statement that the law barring the creation of local right-to-work zones would have made Illinois less competitive and harmed the state's business prospects.

“In a victory for the people, the House of Representatives today kept the door open to stronger job growth in Illinois,” Rauner said in a Nov. 7 statement. “Courageous House lawmakers joined together to make Illinois more competitive so local communities can continue to decide how to make their economies stronger, help their businesses grow and give individual workers the freedom to support a union as they choose.

SB1905 would have barred municipalities in Illinois from creating right-to-work zones, where employees at union companies cannot be forced to pay union fees, according to the Illinois Policy Institute. Supporters of the measure argued that unions and collective bargaining are important tools to protect the middle class, according to WAND.

Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner

Rauner praised House lawmakers for not overriding his veto, which the Senate did an an earlier vote.

“Thanks to their action, Illinois is better positioned to be a national and global competitor,” Rauner said in his statement. “Now we need to buckle down and continue the work of creating economic opportunity for all of the people of Illinois.”