Workers file federal unfair labor practice charges against SEIU local for illegal coercion into joining union to stave off illegal termination threat
Rochester, NY (November 5, 2015) – Four workers in upstate New York have filed federal unfair labor practice charges against SEIU Local 200 union and their employer after they were wrongfully told that becoming dues-paying members of the union was the only way to avoid losing their jobs.
Linda Russell, Cleora Burkett, Lashanna Westley, and Phetvisay Soratana, with free legal aid from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, filed separate but identical charges with National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) Region 3. They all work for Action for a Better Community, Inc. which has a monopoly bargaining agreement with Local 200 that has been in effect since March 2014.
Because New York lacks a Right to Work law, workers can be forced to pay union fees as a condition of employment. However, workers cannot be forced to outright join a union or pay for union political activity.
None of the plaintiffs are members of Local 200 and all refused to pay any fees to Local 200 until union officials provided the required financial disclosure explaining how the fee the union was demanding was calculated. Union officials are required to comply with these procedures under U.S. Supreme Court and NLRB precedent.
Local 200 never provided the required financial disclosure. On October 7, 2015, all four workers received an email from their employer that said that their employment would be terminated unless they began paying fees to Local 200 by the end of the month.
Even then, none of workers were informed of the exact amount of dues they owed or how the fees were calculated. Further, on October 23, an SEIU official wrongfully informed the workers that the union contract did not cover nonmembers and their workplace benefits would be denied unless they joined Local 200.
Despite union officials’ threats, the workers continue to be employed. Federal labor law requires that unions which become monopoly bargaining agents must represent all workers, even those who are not members.
“Desperate to fill their ranks, union bosses spread false information and held a worker’s job hostage,” said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “This case shows that unchecked, union bosses will brazenly violate federal law to seize money from the very workers they claim to represent.”
“A New York State Right to Work law is long overdue, and would end the injustice of permitting union bosses to threaten workers for not financially supporting a union they never chose and don’t support,” 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.
