A worker at a muffler plant in Indiana has filed federal charges against his employer and local union after being told he couldn’t work if he refused to wear union regalia

Columbus, IN (July 30, 2018) – An Indiana muffler plant employee has filed federal unfair labor practice charges against both his employer and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Union Local 1424 for violating his workplace rights. Marshall Hobson filed the charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) with free legal aid from the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation.

Hobson, who resigned his union membership two years ago, filed the charges after he was ordered to purchase and wear shirts at work emblazoned with the union logo. When he refused to buy and wear the union logo shirt, his employer Faurecia – which manufactures mufflers – ordered Hobson to clock out and leave. According to the charge, the decision to send Hobson home was made at the behest of an IBEW union official.

Hobson discovered that union officials and the company had created a contract that explicitly requires even non-union employees to wear union shirts featuring the union logo. Indiana, a Right to Work state, prohibits making union financial support a condition of employment.

As the charges point out, requiring non-union workers to purchase and wear uniforms with union logos unlawfully interferes with the workers’ right to refrain from union activities. The charges will be investigated by the NLRB Region 25 office in Indianapolis, which can prosecute the union and employer for violating federal labor law.

“This case shows that even in Right to Work states, union bosses will use any sneaky tactic to extract money from workers who oppose the union,” said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “It is outrageous that, despite Mr. Hobson’s wish to remain a non-member, union officials have required him to act as a billboard for the very union he opposes.”

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 about 200 cases nationwide per year.