Fort Jackson Security Guard Takes Courageous Stand Against Repeated Union Boss Threats and Abuses

National Labor Relations Board agents investigate charges after Right to Work Foundation attorneys join worker’s efforts

Columbia, South Carolina (October 30, 2009) – A local employee of Wackenhut Services, Inc, a security service provider contracted with Fort Jackson, is fighting back against compulsory unionism after union officials illegally attempted to have him fired from his job for refusing to pay forced union dues.

In September 2008, Ronald I. Paul filed unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) challenging Wackenhut and International Union, Security, Police and Fire Professionals of America (SPFPA) and its affiliated Local 339 union bosses after Wackenhut fired him in August 2008 for refraining from formal, dues paying union membership.  The charges were eventually settled in December of 2008 and Paul continued his employment.

Starting in May 2009, in violation of the settlement, the employer and SPFPA union officials issued new threats against Paul’s job. Claiming that Paul’s workplace is on an “exclusive federal enclave” not protected by South Carolina’s popular Right to Work law, SPFPA union officials compelled Paul to attend a meeting and coerced him to apply for union membership as a condition to keep his job.  In response, Paul filed another round of unfair labor practice charges against the union – pointing out that the union’s own contract explicitly states that formal union membership is not a condition of employment. In September, the NLRB notified Mr. Paul that his charges would be dismissed.

Attorneys from the National Right to Work Foundation contacted Mr. Paul offering free legal aid (which Paul eagerly accepted), and the regional NLRB office in Winston-Salem, North Carolina is now investigating Paul’s charges and additional charges filed by Foundation attorneys. Related charges against Wackenhut are also pending.

In the Foundation-won Communication Workers of America v. Beck (1988), the U.S. Supreme Court held that union officials can lawfully compel nonmembers to pay union dues as a job condition, but not the part of dues spent for non-bargaining activities like political activism, lobbying, and member-only events.  Under Beck, unions must also provide such employees with an audited breakdown of chargeable expenses.

SPFPA union officials continue to threaten Paul despite the fact that they did not provide him with an adequate explanation as required under Beck for the basis of their claims against a portion of his earnings.  Additionally, SPFPA union bosses are requiring employees who refrain from formal, dues paying union membership to partake in an overly burdensome process of specifying the amount of non-bargaining dues they do not wish to pay without providing them with sufficient information to make such a decision.  And finally, Paul is challenging the SPFPA union’s nationwide policy of requiring employees to object every single year to paying union dues they cannot be lawfully forced to pay – rather than objecting just once.

“SPFPA union bosses have repeatedly reneged on their own word and we hope the NLRB will now hold them accountable for their thuggery,” said Stefan Gleason, vice president of the National Right to Work Foundation.   “Right to Work litigators stand guard with Mr. Paul to protect him from union bosses who will stop at nothing to seize hard earned money for their own purposes.”

Fort Jackson Security Guard Takes Courageous Stand Against Repeated Union Boss Threats and Abuses

National Labor Relations Board agents investigate charges after Right to Work Foundation attorneys join worker’s efforts

Columbia, South Carolina (October 30, 2009) – A local employee of Wackenhut Services, Inc, a security service provider contracted with Fort Jackson, is fighting back against compulsory unionism after union officials illegally attempted to have him fired from his job for refusing to pay forced union dues.

In September 2008, Ronald I. Paul filed unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) challenging Wackenhut and International Union, Security, Police and Fire Professionals of America (SPFPA) and its affiliated Local 339 union bosses after Wackenhut fired him in August 2008 for refraining from formal, dues paying union membership. The charges were eventually settled in December of 2008 and Paul continued his employment.

Starting in May 2009, in violation of the settlement, the employer and SPFPA union officials issued new threats against Paul’s job.

(Read the full press release)

AFL-CIO Launches Sneak Attack on Nation’s Non-Union Railway and Airline Workers

National Right to Work opposes union officials’ quiet efforts to grease the skids to impose forced unionism at non-union workplaces

Washington, DC (November 3, 2009) – America’s preeminent workers’ rights advocacy organization raised the alarm about an under-the-radar attempt by the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) and 30 other unions to make a dramatic change to labor regulations, enabling union organizers to corral tens of thousands of non-union railway and airline industry workers into union membership.

Yesterday, the National Mediation Board (NMB), a government agency charged under the Railway Labor Act with mediating labor disputes within the railroad and airline industries, voted 2-1 to preliminarily support the controversial changes.  The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation sent a letter objecting to the AFL-CIO union’s proposals and the NMB is requesting comments on the proposed changes.  The Foundation will file formal comments in the coming days.

The AFL-CIO union bosses’ proposal urges the NMB to discard its policy of requiring a true majority of all workers within a collective bargaining unit to decide for themselves if they wish to be represented by a union – a 75-year-old precedent – and instead implement new procedures that require only a majority of workers actually voting in a union organizing election to make that decision for the whole group.

The National Right to Work Foundation opposes the AFL-CIO’s proposal because it makes it exceedingly difficult for independent-minded workers to resist Big Labor’s well-funded, professional organizing machine, particularly since these campaigns must be run across an entire, often-nationwide bargaining unit.  The proposed change also imposes a greater burden on employees who wish to refrain from union membership by forcing them to either take affirmative action to oppose the union or otherwise potentially allow far less than a majority make that decision for them.

“Apparently unable to convince a true majority of affected workers to vote for unionization under the current process, AFL-CIO operatives are attempting to change the rules to give themselves the upper hand over the workers,” said Stefan Gleason, vice president of National Right to Work. “Individual workers should never be forced into union ranks against their will, and it’s unconscionable that union bosses want to be able to impose unionization without an actual majority of employees ever showing support for a union.”

The National Right to Work Foundation’s letter also calls on the NMB to establish a formal process for workers wanting to remove a union as their monopoly bargaining agent as required under Foundation-won precedent in U.S. federal court.

AFL-CIO Launches Sneak Attack on Nation’s Non-Union Railway and Airline Workers

National Right to Work opposes union officials’ quiet efforts to grease the skids to impose forced unionism at non-union workplaces

Washington, DC (November 3, 2009) – America’s preeminent workers’ rights advocacy organization raised the alarm about an under-the-radar attempt by the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) and 30 other unions to make a dramatic change to labor regulations, enabling union organizers to corral tens of thousands of non-union railway and airline industry workers into union membership.

Yesterday, the National Mediation Board (NMB), a government agency charged under the Railway Labor Act with mediating labor disputes within the railroad and airline industries, voted 2-1 to preliminarily support the controversial changes. The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation sent a letter objecting to the AFL-CIO union’s proposals and the NMB is requesting comments on the proposed changes. The Foundation will file formal comments in the coming days.

The AFL-CIO union bosses’ proposal urges the NMB to discard its policy of requiring a true majority of all workers within a collective bargaining unit to decide for themselves if they wish to be represented by a union – a 75-year-old precedent – and instead implement new procedures that require only a majority of workers actually voting in a union organizing election to make that decision for the whole group.

(Read the full press release)

Late last week, notoriously corrupt Service Employee International Union (SEIU) Local 1000 brass sent a clear message to those who object and attempt to expose their shady underbellies.  When California state employee and part-time reporter Ken Hamidi, a vocal critic of SEIU boss corruption, arrived at a SEIU Local 1000 meeting as in preparation for a cable access show exposing the local's misconduct, SEIU union thugs assaulted him:

Hamidi says he came to the hall to expose how he says SEIU union leaders are spending tens of thousands of dollars on a political race, he claims, they have no right to do.  After he and a photographer walked in to the meeting, it didn't take long for Hamidi to be right out the door and on his way to the hospital.

After Hamidi entered the meeting, SEIU union bosses ordered union militants to "beat the hell out of him." Three or four union thugs then held Hamidi down and beat him until he was "covered in blood."  SEIU union toughs then reportedly warned Hamidi that if he ever showed up again, they would probably kill him.

Hamidi was treated at the hospital for lacerations to his head and face and the district attorney is investigating the incident.

Sadly, if workers in California were protected by a Right to Work law, this incident may have been adverted.  Right to Work laws promote accountability of union officials to rank and file workers, thereby reducing union boss corruption.  If SEIU Local 1000 officials were obligated to be accountable to their members, it would have been much less likely Mr. Hamidi would have reason to investigate them and their questionable political schemes.

A heated battle is raging in Congress between major shipping companies United Parcel Service, Inc. (UPS) and FedEx Corporation and the rights of literally tens -- if not hundreds -- of thousands of employees hang in the balance.

You see, UPS is regulated under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and is heavily unionized, as 240,000 of its total 425,000 employees are required to accept union bosses' monopoly bargaining "representation."  Meanwhile, FedEx is under the jurisdiction of the Railway Labor Act (RLA) -- which also gives union bosses monopoly bargaining privileges, but only if an absolute majority of workers in a given bargaining unit vote to accept union bosses as their monopoly bargaining agent -- and so only 4,700 of 290,000 FedEx employees have been unionized. 

So now UPS is backing legislation in Congress that would switch FedEx employees to the jurisdiction of the NLRA, making it easier for union bosses to corral FedEx's employees into union ranks and force them to pay union dues just to keep their jobs.

ReasonTV has just released a video -- parodying UPS's famous "Whiteboard" commercials -- detailing the UPS/FedEx dispute:

Unfortunately, FedEx employees' workplace freedoms are not only in jeopardy by Congressional action, but also by federal bureaucratic fiat.

Big Labor is pushing for the National Mediation Board (NMB) -- a government agency charged under the RLA with mediating labor disputes within the railroad and airline industries -- to make dramatic changes to its enforcement of the RLA, greasing the skids for union organizers to force tens of thousands of non-union railway and airline industry workers into union membership.

Big labor partisans from over 30 unions, led by AFL-CIO, are pushing to change the threshold union organizers need to impose unions on workers in the railway and airline industries to just a majority of workers actually voting in a union organizing election to make that decision for the whole group.

What seems like a small procedural change is in reality a major game changer, as it makes it exceedingly difficult for independent-minded workers to resist Big Labor’s well-funded, professional organizing machine, particularly since these campaigns must be run across an entire, often-nationwide bargaining unit.  Also, independent-minded FedEx employees would either have to take affirmative action to oppose union "representation" or otherwise potentially allow far less than a majority of their colleagues impose an unwanted union on them.

Unfortunately, regardless of how individual workers lose their rights -- through actions of Congress or through executive branch machinations -- Big Labor and Big Government are likely to be the only winners in the UPS-FedEx war.

Between October 2003 and February 2004, United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW) union officials ordered employees in Southern California out on strike.  For five months employees were out of work.

Now, UFCW union bosses apparently intend to replicate that situation in Arizona and many employees have contacted the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation for information about their rights as they relate to the scheduled strike.

The situation raises serious concerns for employees who believe there is much to lose from a union-ordered strike, which is why so many are contacting the Foundation to learn how they can avoid fines and other vicious union discipline for continuing to report to work to support themselves and their families.

The fact is employees indeed have the right to rebuff union strike demands under federal labor law and Arizona’s popular Right to Work law, but it is important you read the following before you do so.

You should learn about your rights from independent sources and should not rely on what self-interested union officials tell you.   For over four decades, the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation has worked in the courts to expand and protect the rights of individual employees in such situations.   It is the nation’s premier organization exclusively dedicated to providing free legal assistance to employee victims of forced unionism abuse.

Safeway and Fry’s employees should know they have the following rights:

1) You have the right to resign your membership in the union.  If you don’t support this union, you can send the union a letter resigning your membership.

2) You have the right to go to work even if the union bosses ordered a strike. Union officials can (and often do) fine actual union members who work during a strike.   So, you should seriously consider resigning BEFORE you return to work during a strike, which is the only way to avoid these union fines and discipline.  See Union Discipline and Employee Rights. 

3) You also have the right to revoke your dues check-off and stop allowing the union hierarchy to collect money from your paycheck every week. You can send letters to the union and your employer revoking your authorization to have union dues deducted from your paycheck.

4) If you wish to eject an unaccountable union hierarchy from your workplace, you have the right to sign a decertification petition to obtain a secret ballot election to do so. See Decertification Election. 

A sample letter for employees who wish to resign their union membership and revoke their dues check-off is here. NOTE: If possible, use certified mail, return receipt requested, and save copies of your letters and the return receipt to prove delivery. If you hand deliver a resignation and/or dues deduction revocation, make sure that you have a reliable witness to the delivery. In our experience, it is not uncommon for angry and dishonest union officials to pretend they did not actually receive resignations and initiate proceedings against non-striking workers anyway.

Go to About Your Legal Rights: Private Sector Employee to learn more about your rights.

______________, 2009

Today’s Date

(Certified Mail - Return Receipt Requested)

Secretary-Treasurer Paul Rubin
UFCW Local 99
2401 North Central Avenue, 2nd Floor
Phoenix, Arizona 85004

and

Fry’s or Safeway Personnel/Payroll/Human Resources Department
__________________

Address

__________________

Dear Sirs:

Effective immediately, I am not a member of UFCW Local 99. If your records show me as a member, I hereby resign that membership.

Now that there is no longer a collective bargaining agreement in effect between the union and my employer, you must cease deducting any further union dues from my salary. In the absence of a collective bargaining agreement, dues deduction authorizations may be revoked at any time. I hereby revoke and rescind any dues deduction authorization I may have signed.

If you refuse to accept this letter as both an effective resignation and an immediately effective dues check-off revocation, I ask that you promptly inform me, in writing, of exactly what steps you believe I must take to effectuate my resignation and/or revocation of the dues check-off authorization.

Sincerely,

____________________
Name (Print)

____________________

Signature

____________________

Address

____________________