Erie, PA (January 17, 2006) – Ending an illegal union harassment scheme intended to stifle dissent, three employees at The Electric Materials Company (TEMCO) won a settlement against the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE) union obligating union officials to honor as continuing one-time objections to compulsory union dues spent for politics and other non-bargaining activities.

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) brokered the precedent-setting settlement agreement after National Right to Work Foundation attorneys persuaded the agency to issue one of its first unfair labor practice complaints challenging the common union practice of requiring union nonmembers to annually renew their objections in order to pay an amount less than full dues. The annual objection scheme has been adopted by unions across America to hamstring potential objectors.

The settlement also orders UE union officials to stop charging nonmember objectors for any union expenses that are unrelated to collective bargaining, and the union brass must reimburse the employees and their similarly situated colleagues for all illegally seized dues, plus interest, and post notices in the workplace of the employees’ rights that the union had violated.

“This settlement stalls the all-out offensive of UE union officials against independent-minded workers,” said Stefan Gleason, Foundation Vice President. “Workers should not have to jump over procedural obstacles in order to assert their right not to fuel the union’s political machine with their forced dues.”

The workers employed by the copper products manufacturer had alleged in their unfair labor practice charges filed with the NLRB that union officials denied employees their right to not subsidize union politics, failed to provide them with a legally-mandated independent audit of union expenditures, and continued to seize full union dues from workers’ paychecks despite formal objections to paying full dues.

Lynn Whelan, Gary Brown, and Miles Kidder obtaining free legal assistance from the Foundation. Beginning in October 2003, the employees informed union officials that they were exercising their right to refrain from paying full union dues. However, union officials not only forced the employees to pay more dues than could be compelled under federal law, but they also demanded that employees reconfirm their objections on an annual basis.

The actions of UE union officials violated rights recognized under the Foundation-won U.S. Supreme Court Communications Workers v. Beck decision. Under Beck and subsequent NLRB rulings, union officials must inform employees of their right to refrain from formal union membership and their right to not pay for costs unrelated to collective bargaining, such as union political activity.

The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation is a nonprofit, charitable organization providing free legal aid to employees whose human or civil rights have been violated by compulsory unionism abuses. The Foundation, which can be contacted toll-free at 1-800-336-3600, assists thousands of employees in more than 250 cases nationwide per year.