Standing with Montana Workers

Montana’s history is filled with moments when everyday Montanans stood up to powerful corporations and demanded better pay, safer conditions, and a voice in the workplace - from the union halls of Butte to the timber crews of the Bitterroot and the railroad yards of Havre, working people built this state. I grew up hearing these stories in my living room from my father K. Ross Toole who famously delivered lectures on the extraordinary history of the labor movement in Montana. 

  

Today, too many workers still feel squeezed by rising costs, stagnant wages, and politicians who side with big corporations instead of working families. I believe every Montanan deserves the dignity of a good job, fair wages, and safe working conditions. And I believe strongly in the right to organize and collectively bargain.

​

That’s why I strongly oppose so-called “right-to-work” laws. These laws are designed to weaken unions, drive down wages, and silence workers and they have no place in a state built by strong hands and union pride.

 

As your legislator, I’ll support policies that strengthen protections for workers and unions, support prevailing wage laws, expand apprenticeship and skilled trades training, and prioritize hiring Montanans in state contracts and infrastructure projects.