Los Angeles, Calif. (April 11, 2002) – With the help of attorneys with the National Right to Work Foundation, Victoria Heggem filed suit against the Arcadia Teachers Association (ATA) for religious discrimination. Foundation attorneys filed the suit today in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
Ms. Heggem, a devout member of the Lake Avenue Congregational Church, asked ATA officials to accommodate her religious beliefs (which prevent her from supporting an organization involved in activities she considers immoral) and instead divert the dues to a mutually agreed upon charity.
In retaliation, ATA union officials demanded Heggem pay $700.00, union dues for a full year, in one lump sum. ATA officials told Heggem that if she did not meet this demand (a demand not imposed on any other teachers), they would not honor her religious objection and would begin automatically deducting fees from her paycheck that would go directly to the objectionable union.
“No one should be forced to support a union and political agenda that they find morally offensive,” said Stefan Gleason, Vice President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “This is a fight to protect people of faith from being harassed by union bosses.”
Under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, unions must accommodate sincere religious objectors like Heggem by allowing them to make charitable contributions in lieu of paying union fees.
The ATA is an affiliate of the California Teachers Association (CTA) and the National Education Association (NEA), two of the most powerful and politically active teachers’ unions in the country. Many teachers object to the unions’ support for abortion, special rights for homosexuals, and other objectionable social causes.
“Unfortunately, this not an isolated incident. Teachers across the country, regardless of their faith, are being shaken down to pay for this radical agenda,” stated Gleason.
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.
