Ohio

News Release: Ohio Teachers File Class-Action to Halt Compulsory Union Dues for Political Activism

Anthony Riedel — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 13:53:06 -0400

Ohio Teachers File Class-Action to Halt Compulsory Union Dues for Political Activism

Union bosses illegally force Ohio’s teachers to pay for electioneering

Columbus, Ohio (August 5, 2011) – With free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation, 15 public school teachers across the state filed a federal class-action lawsuit against the Ohio Education Association (OEA) and nine of its regional affiliates for violating their rights.

Workers' Rights Are At Stake in Labor Battles Nationwide, But Not in the Way Union Bosses Claim

Anthony Riedel — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 17:28:21 -0400

Last week, Mark Mix, President of National Right to Work, pointed out in Investor's Business Daily that the real issue in the ongoing battles between Big Labor and reform-minded public officials in various states across the country is getting lost in the union bosses' self-serving rhetoric.

As Mix notes, given the media coverage of the battle in Wisconsin:

Union Bosses, School District Face Federal Suit for Illegal Forced Union Dues Scheme

Anthony Riedel — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 14:25:03 -0500

Union Bosses, School District Face Federal Suit for Illegal Forced Union Dues Scheme

School employees challenge unconstitutional union dues confiscation

Cincinnati, OH (January 21, 2011) – A group of Cincinnati Public Schools employees today filed a federal lawsuit against a local union and the city school district for illegally confiscating union dues from their paychecks in violation of their constitutional rights.

New Foundation Podcast: Ohio Religious Objectors Seek Foundation Assistance

Will Collins — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 10:52:21 -0500

In our latest podcast, Foundation attorney Bruce Cameron sits down with radio host Phil Heimlich to discuss the plight of two Ohio teachers whose religious beliefs compelled them to object to their union's controversial political advocacy.

Coldwater Teacher Files Federal Suit Against Ohio Teacher Union Notorious for Religious Discrimination

Anthony Riedel — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 12:10:38 -0500

With free legal aid from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, a fourth grade teacher from Ohio has filed a federal suit against Ohio's largest teacher union for religious discrimination:

Columbus, OH (December 4, 2008) – A fourth grade teacher from the Coldwater Exempted Village School District has filed a federal suit against the state’s largest teacher union for forcing her to pay compulsory union fees to fund the union whose activities violate her religious faith.

National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation attorneys, providing the teacher with free legal aid, filed the suit this week in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Eastern Division.

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Foundation Defends Ohio Religious Objectors

Will Collins — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 16:51:35 -0400

Here's our latest press release on the Foundation's efforts to defend the rights of religious objectors to refrain from supporting union activities that offend their deeply-held beliefs:

Cincinnati, Ohio (September 24, 2008) – National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation staff attorneys recently obtained settlements with the National Education Association (NEA) union for two teachers whose consciences would not allow them to pay mandatory dues to support a union involved in activities they consider immoral. Geralyn Buening and Tessy Huwer, both practicing Catholics, objected to the NEA’s positions on abortion and special rights for homosexuals.

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UPS Drivers Sue Teamsters for Forcing Nonmembers to Subsidize Organizing Activities and Union Strike Fund

Nick Cote — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 13:02:14 -0400

Today, the Foundation issued a news release announcing parallel federal lawsuits concerning illegal forced dues:

With free legal aid from the National Right to Work Foundation, three UPS employees in Kentucky and two UPS employees in Ohio filed federal lawsuits Friday and Monday, respectively, against national and local Teamsters officials for illegal extraction of forced union dues.

In the lawsuits, the nonmember employees claim that the national and local unions breached their duty of fair representation and violated the employees’ First and Fifth Amendment rights by charging and collecting fees used for organizing nonunion workers throughout the United States and financing a members-only “Strike and Defense Fund.”

Read the rest of the Foundation's news release here.

Quick Hits - June 24, 2008

Will Collins — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 14:35:11 -0400

A few Right to Work-related updates from around the web:

1.) The Toledo Blade has a great editorial up on one city official's attempt to strong arm private contractors into blackballing non-union workers. Money quote:

Mr. Szollosi argues that because public money was spent on the property, the principles that apply to public construction should hold sway even after the property is sold to the private sector. But the only thing that would be accomplished by restricting development on the site to union workers would be to limit Mr. Dillin's ability to negotiate the best deal he can with local trade unions, raising labor costs and potentially putting the project in jeopardy.

Video: Inter-Union Scuffle Erupts, Elderly Woman Knocked to the Ground

Justin Hakes — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 12:05:20 -0400

News today of more squabbling between SEIU and CNA union officials. A dispute over reigning roughly 8,000 Ohio nurses, and their forced union dues, into compulsory unionism led to a fight at a banquet.

As you can watch described below, not only did union operatives throw punches, hit people with signs, and link arms to block out the arriving police, but an elderly woman was also knocked to the ground.

LIUNA Union Official Spent Nearly $20,000 in Union Dues at Strip Clubs

John Powell — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 11:04:42 -0500

A top official – Steven T. Thomas – at the Laborer’s International Union of North America (LIUNA) Local 500 in Ohio was fired for spending thousands of dollars on personal entertainment using the union’s credit card.

Of course, the credit card debts are paid by forced dues-paying workers the union local supposedly “represents.” And according to this union boss, there’s apparently no better way to represent the working interests of those employees than to spend the money in multiple gentlemen’s clubs.

The Toledo Blade reports:

[Steven T. Thomas] charged the union $17,414 for 96 separate visits in 2004 to Scarlett’s in Toledo and Kahoots Gentlemen's Club in Columbus, according to report obtained by The Blade.

Thomas, the business manager of the union local, was removed in May 2007 for the misuse of funds.

But in an ironic twist, Judge Nadine S. Pettiford of the Ohio Unemployment Compensation Review Commission recently ruled that Thomas was not fired with just cause from his job and ordered that Thomas’ unemployment benefits be reinstated.

The outcome of this story is entirely amazing, as it highlights yet another reason why compulsory unionism and corruption go hand-in-hand and why labor bosses often barely receive a slap on the wrist when they misuse union dues.