Former Gov. Bill Owens chimes in on Amendment 47

Today it was announced that Colorado’s former Republican governor Bill Owens has endorsed Amendment 47, a “right-to-work” ballot question that would restrict the way labor unions organize in the state.

A Better Colorado, the campaign that is backing Amendment 47, disclosed today that Owens was coming out in support of the proposal.

The news comes less than a week after opponents of the “right-to-work” measure staged a rally at the local offices of the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) union where U.S. Sen. Ken Salazar and Rep. Ed Perlmutter assailed Amendment 47 as a anti-worker ballot initiative.

Amendment 47 would restrict the way labor groups organize and negotiate in the state, by banning collective-bargaining agreements between unions and businesses that require minimal agency fees from nonmember employees who receive union-negotiated benefits in the workplace.