Labor & Economy Tracker
Right-to-Work Laws by State (2026)
Can a worker be required to join or pay a union to keep a job? It depends entirely on the state. Below is a clear, sourced guide to right-to-work laws in all 50 states — which states prohibit mandatory union membership and fees, and which permit them.
The two categories
Status is drawn from the National Right to Work Foundation & NCSL, the standard references for right-to-work law.
- Right-to-Work. No worker can be required to join or pay a union as a condition of employment. Protected by state statute or, in several states, the state constitution.
- No Right-to-Work Law. Union-security agreements are permitted — a union contract may require covered employees to join or pay fees to the union.
The 50-state table
| State | Status | How it works |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work by statute since 1953; also enshrined in the state constitution in 2016. |
| Alaska | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; union-security agreements are permitted. |
| Arizona | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work protected in the state constitution since 1946. |
| Arkansas | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work protected in the state constitution (Amendment 34) since 1944. |
| California | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; union-security agreements are permitted. |
| Colorado | No Right-to-Work Law | Not right-to-work; its unique Labor Peace Act allows union-security only after a supermajority vote. |
| Connecticut | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; union-security agreements are permitted. |
| Delaware | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; union-security agreements are permitted. |
| Florida | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work protected in the state constitution since 1944. |
| Georgia | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work by statute since 1947. |
| Hawaii | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; union-security agreements are permitted. |
| Idaho | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work by statute since 1985 (upheld by a 1986 referendum). |
| Illinois | No Right-to-Work Law | Not right-to-work; a 2022 constitutional amendment bars any future right-to-work law. |
| Indiana | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work by statute since 2012. |
| Iowa | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work by statute since 1947. |
| Kansas | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work protected in the state constitution since 1958. |
| Kentucky | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work by statute since 2017. |
| Louisiana | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work by statute since 1976. |
| Maine | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; union-security agreements are permitted. |
| Maryland | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; union-security agreements are permitted. |
| Massachusetts | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; union-security agreements are permitted. |
| Michigan | No Right-to-Work Law | No longer right-to-work; repealed its 2012 law effective early 2024 — the first state in decades to do so. |
| Minnesota | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; union-security agreements are permitted. |
| Mississippi | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work protected in the state constitution (plus statute) since 1960. |
| Missouri | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; a 2017 RTW law was overturned by voters in a 2018 referendum. |
| Montana | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; union-security agreements are permitted. |
| Nebraska | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work protected in the state constitution since 1946. |
| Nevada | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work by statute since 1951. |
| New Hampshire | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; RTW bills have been introduced repeatedly but never enacted. |
| New Jersey | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; union-security agreements are permitted. |
| New Mexico | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; union-security agreements are permitted. |
| New York | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; union-security agreements are permitted. |
| North Carolina | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work by statute since 1947. |
| North Dakota | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work by statute (initiated measure) since 1947. |
| Ohio | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; a 1958 RTW ballot measure was rejected by voters. |
| Oklahoma | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work protected in the state constitution since 2001 (State Question 695). |
| Oregon | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; union-security agreements are permitted. |
| Pennsylvania | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; union-security agreements are permitted. |
| Rhode Island | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; union-security agreements are permitted. |
| South Carolina | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work by statute since 1954. |
| South Dakota | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work protected in the state constitution since 1946. |
| Tennessee | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work by statute since 1947; added to the state constitution in 2022. |
| Texas | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work by statute since 1947 (recodified 1993). |
| Utah | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work by statute since 1955. |
| Vermont | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; union-security agreements are permitted. |
| Virginia | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work by statute since 1947; voters rejected adding it to the constitution in 2016. |
| Washington | No Right-to-Work Law | Not a right-to-work state; union-security agreements are permitted. |
| West Virginia | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work by statute since 2016 (upheld by the state supreme court in 2020). |
| Wisconsin | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work by statute since 2015. |
| Wyoming | Right-to-Work | Right-to-work by statute since 1963. |
No states in this category.
Cite this page
Free to reference with attribution. Copy the citation below:
"Right-to-Work Laws by State (2026): A 50-State Guide," The Liberty Tribune, https://thelibertytribune.com/trackers/right-to-work-by-state/ Methodology & sources
Right-to-work status follows the National Right to Work Foundation & NCSL (as of August 2026), cross-checked between the two. A right-to-work law bars union-security agreements — so no worker can be required to join or pay a union as a condition of employment. In several states the protection is written into the state constitution, which is harder to repeal than a statute.
Two recent changes are worth noting. Michigan repealed its 2012 right-to-work law effective early 2024 — the first state in decades to do so — dropping the national count to 26. Missouri passed a right-to-work statute in 2017, but voters overturned it by referendum in 2018 before it took effect, so Missouri remains a non-right-to-work state. Colorado is an edge case: not right-to-work, but its Labor Peace Act imposes an extra vote before union-security clauses can take effect.
Source: National Right to Work Foundation & NCSL. Compiled by The Liberty Tribune. Last verified August 5, 2026. Right-to-work is a state-law concept; the District of Columbia is not classified here. Laws change — verify a state's current status with an official source before relying on it.