: opposing or banning the closed shop and the union shop

Examples of right-to-work in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The campaign faces a tight deadline, but veto referendums have been successful in Missouri as recently as 2017, when labor unions successfully organized to defeat a right-to-work law that would have banned compulsory union fees. Kacen Bayless, Kansas City Star, 16 Sep. 2025 Illinois is surrounded by states — Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky and Wisconsin — which have right-to-work laws. Charles Selle, Chicago Tribune, 27 Aug. 2025 In their most recent fundraising email, Indiana House Democrats evoked their 2011 walkout over right-to-work legislation opposed by labor unions. Indianapolis Star, IndyStar, 7 Aug. 2025 Think parsing compliance documents and flagging issues in seconds, automating right-to-work checks across government sites and encoding standard operating procedures (SOPs) into machine-readable rules. Vardhan Kapoor, Forbes.com, 17 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for right-to-work

Word History

First Known Use

1949, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of right-to-work was in 1949

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Cite this Entry

“Right-to-work.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/right-to-work. Accessed 29 Sep. 2025.

Legal Definition

right-to-work

adjective
: of, relating to, or being a law prohibiting labor agreements that require all employees to be union members
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