![[CREDIT: Rob Borkowski] The Rhode Island State House is located at 82 Smith St. Providence. The Senate has approved Sen. LaMountain's bill allowing employees to refuse employer's mandatory meetings regarding religious or political matters.](https://e8dgfhu6pow.exactdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/RI-State-House-336x252.jpg?strip=all&lossy=1&ssl=1)
STATE HOUSE — The Senate at this time permitted laws that may shield staff’ office First Modification rights to refuse obligatory conferences.
The invoice (2025-S 0126A), launched by Sen. Matthew L. LaMountain (D-Dist. 31, Warwick, Cranston) would shield the rights of staff within the office who refuse attendance at employer-sponsored conferences relating to political or spiritual issues, in addition to refusing to hearken to a political or spiritual speech.
Invoice bans obligatory conferences
Teamsters Native 251 referred to as on the state’s Home of Representatives to cross its companion laws, H5506, which bans so-called “obligatory attendance” at captive viewers conferences, which the group mentioned are held to intimidate employees away from becoming a member of a union, in line with the union’s assertion on the payments.
Teamsters Native 251 represents greater than 6,300 employees in all kinds of industries all through Rhode Island and southeastern Massachusetts.
“We’d wish to thank Sen. LaMountain and everybody else who voted for S126A,” mentioned Matt Taibi, Native 251 Secretary-Treasurer. “Now it’s time for home members to get on board, as a result of no person must be compelled to endure political propaganda on the job. Employees have interaction with unions of their very own free will — nobody is ever compelled to take part. Rhode Island wants to finish this unfair apply and rise up for freedom of affiliation within the office.”
“Now it’s time for home members to get on board, as a result of no person must be compelled to endure political propaganda on the job.
“This laws goals to discover a center floor in defending the free speech rights of staff with out trampling on the free speech rights of employers,” mentioned Senator LaMountain, who serves as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. “Political coercion is changing into a extra widespread drawback within the office. Captive viewers conferences, the place employers require employees to hearken to political, spiritual or anti-union rhetoric on firm time, is a severe menace to particular person liberty, and this invoice seeks to curb that apply.”
Staff aggrieved by self-discipline or discharge by the employer would have the proper to convey a civil motion in opposition to the employer searching for equitable aid and/or compensatory damages together with attorneys’ charges and prices.
Rhode Island would turn out to be the 12th state to ban the apply of captive viewers conferences. Teamsters’ advocacy for the proper of employees to train free speech on the job, has helped guarantee almost three in 10 Individuals lives in a state the place such conferences are outlawed.
The obligatory conferences measure now strikes to the Home, the place related laws (2025-H 5506) has been launched by Rep. Robert E. Craven (D-Dist. 32, North Kingstown).
