Earle-Sears, Virginia GOP back anti-union policy, federal job cuts while claiming to support workers

Leaders with Service Employees International Union (SEIU) blasted the Virginia Republican ticket for supporting anti-worker policies like “right-to-work” as unemployment rises under the Trump and Youngkin administrations.

Republicans in Virginia’s fall elections are telling voters they support workers and businesses, and claim Democrats would cause economic harm if elected. But every statewide Republican candidate has stood by in support – be it tacit or overt – of Trump administration policies that have caused actual economic pain in the commonwealth. 

Virginia was the only state in the country where unemployment rose in June, with unemployment rates in Arlington and Fairfax counties also reaching four-year highs the month prior. And on Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s watch, Virginia dropped in CNBC’s much-hyped America’s Top State for Business ranking because of the disproportionate impact of federal job cuts in Virginia. 

Nevertheless, Virginia’s Republican statewide ticket —  gubernatorial nominee and current Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears; nominee for lieutenant governor John Reid, and Attorney General Jason Miyares, who is running for re-election — has tried to claim the mantle of being pro-business and pro-worker. 

Local labor leaders aren’t buying it, though, criticizing Virginia Republicans for supporting Trump’s federal cuts and attacks on workers. Earle-Sears in particular has taken heat for her apparent nonchalance about the harm of Trump’s cuts, saying she doesn’t understand why “the media is making it out to be a huge, huge thing,” despite quietly acknowledging their unpopularity.  

Jaime Contreras, chair of the SEIU State Council of Virginia, told Dogwood that Earle-Sears would be “just another rubber stamp for Trump’s extreme agenda in Virginia.”

“Sears has basically downplayed the fact that these job cuts in the federal government [have] affected thousands and thousands of Virginian federal workers negatively,” Contreras said.

GOP platform

In response to email questions about her stances on labor and economic policy issues, and “right-to-work” specifically, Earle-Sears’ campaign sent Dogwood a statement focused on her staunch support for Virginia’s anti-union law. 

“Either you believe workers should have the freedom to decide how to spend their paycheck or not!” Earle-Sears said in the statement. “Therefore, I will defend Virginia’s Right-to-Work law because it’s simple: no one should be forced to join or pay a union just to earn a living.”

“Right-to-work” laws prevent companies and unions from entering into labor agreements that require workers to pay dues or fees to the union. Virginia is one of 26 states that has a “right-to-work” law on the books. 

Supporters argue it helps keep the state competitive, but critics, including most unions, oppose “right-to-work” – or “right-to-work-for-less” as it’s sometimes referred to – as an anti-union measure that undermines workers’ ability to collectively bargain for better pay and working conditions. 

“It’s a misleading policy that undermines workers’ rights, weakens unions, and drives down wages and benefits across the board,” Rodney Nickens, a Democratic House of Delegates candidate, posted on X earlier this month. “This law was never about protecting individual freedom—it was designed to divide working people and strip them of collective bargaining power.”

“Right-to-work” in practice does not lead to greater freedom, as Republicans like Earle-Sears suggest, rather it erodes workers’ quality of life, according to LaNoral Thomas, the president of Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Virginia 512. 

“‘Right-to-work’ is not actually a right to work,” Thomas told Dogwood in an interview. “‘Right-to-work’ actually prohibits employees from really being able to join and participate in a union.” 

Efforts at repeal have stalled in the statehouse in recent years, with some Democrats backing repeal and others like Democratic nominee for governor Abigail Spanberger pushing for some kind of reform.

Earle-Sears said she would veto any bill that threatens “right-to-work” and appoint leaders who support the policy because, as she put it, “There is no freedom if we lose the Right-to-Work.” 

Reid, Miyares

Reid did not respond to an email request for comment, but he did respond to this Dogwood reporter’s post asking what it would mean for Virginia workers if he and his running mates win in the fall. 

“Virginia’s workforce is in danger if we lose,” Reid said on X. 

Reid listed five ways he would “strengthen and protect” Virginia’s workforce. At the top of his list was defending “right-to-work” to protect workers and keep Virginia competitive with neighboring states. The list included public safety, because “crime drives out talent,” and cutting “red tape for small biz & trades.” Reid offered vague support for parental leave and “flex work” to support “family stability,” and said he wants to “fight job-killing energy mandates.” 

Reid did not offer more detail beyond what he posted on X and did not respond to an email following up on his X post. 

Miyares did not respond to a request for comment for this story, but has a history of supporting “right-to-work” and other anti-worker measures. During his time as a state delegate from 2016 to 2021, he voted against legislation that allowed state and local entities to require project labor agreements on public works projects. He also voted against allowing localities to recognize unions and collectively bargain.  

Both Miyares and Earle-Sears have been attacked for not doing enough to stand up against Trump’s attacks on federal workers, hundreds of thousands of whom live or work in Virginia. 

Despite their pro-worker rhetoric, Virginia Republicans have blocked polices backed by unions aimed at expanding the rights of workers so they can improve their lives. 

Contreras said the SEIU in Virginia is focused on expanding collective bargaining rights for public employees and home care workers, passing local laws that protect property services workers’ jobs, and raising the minimum wage. Bills backing these policies have passed out of the General Assembly, which is controlled by Democrats, but were vetoed by Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin. 

Earle-Sears has criticized Spanberger’s support for raising the minimum wage, and it’s not clear that Earle-Sears has taken a position on the other policies. 

But for Contreras, it’s not hard to imagine where Earle-Sears stands on these issues.

“I have no reason to believe that Winsome Sears would sign any of those (pieces of legislation),” Contreras said. “She’s more extreme than (Youngkin) is.”