Officers Challenge Retaliation, Termination for Blowing the Whistle on Scheme to Illegally Divert $5/hour of Pay to Union

Westerly, Rhode Island (September 21, 2015) – Five part-time police officers in Westerly, RI have filed a motion for a preliminary injunction to stop town and union officials from illegally seizing a portion (at a rate of $5 an hour) of every paycheck in forced union dues.

On July 28, 2015, Thomas Cimalore, Anthony Falcone, Scott Ferrigno, Darrell Koza, and Raymond Morrone, filed a Civil Rights lawsuit against the Town of Westerly, several town officials, and International Brotherhood of Police Officers Local 503 (Local 503) in U.S. District Court. The plaintiffs are receiving free legal aid from the National Right to Work Foundation.

The plaintiffs are seeking an injunction so they will not be forced to pay fees to Local 503 as their lawsuit proceeds through the court system.

The lawsuit alleges that the plaintiffs’ First, Fifth, and Fourteenth Amendment rights (and other state labor and whistle blower protection statutes) are violated when they are forced, as a condition of employment, to financially support Local 503 despite never authorizing or requesting that the town withhold a portion of their paycheck and distribute those funds to Local 503.

Because Rhode Island lacks a Right to Work law, and is a forced-unionism state, workers who choose not to join a union can still be forced to pay fees to union bosses as a condition of employment if they labor under a union-imposed contract. However, these 5 part-time officers are not only nonmembers; they are not even represented under Local 503’s monopoly bargaining agreement with the Town of Westerly. Despite that, a clause in the union contract specifically states that, although not covered by the agreement, part-time officers are required to pay a fee to Local 503.

The deductions began about the beginning of April 2014. Later in the summer of 2014, the plaintiffs allege that the chief of police threatened retaliation against the officers for having publicly raised the issue of the forced-dues scheme.

In November 2014, the Town revised its “Detail Assignment System” which it uses to allocate all “private duty” assignments. The pay for private duty is 38 dollars an hour. The system was revised in such a manner that it diminished plaintiffs’ hours and pay. The timing and circumstances of the revision caused the officers to allege the revision was retaliation by the town for their questioning the illegal forced fee arrangement.

Moreover, on December 4, 2014, plaintiff Darrell Koza was fired with neither notice nor a hearing. In addition to the five officers’ lawsuit, Koza has filed a separate suit alleging that his termination was illegal retaliation for publicly speaking out against the illegal scheme.

“The judge hearing this case should quickly grant this injunction to at least provide some relief to these hardworking public servants who are currently illegally forced to pay union fees,” said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation.

“While we ultimately believe this forced-dues scheme will be declared unconstitutional and a violation of these officers’ rights, stopping the confiscation of parts of their paychecks would be an important step toward victory,” continued Mix.

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.