Hospital Worker to Testify at Congressional Hearing Regarding SEIU Card Check Coercion

Worker advocate says National Labor Relations Board has failed to protect workers who wish to refrain from union affiliation

Washington, DC (June 26, 2013) – An Orange County, California hospital worker and her National Right to Work Foundation staff attorney will testify today before a U.S. House subcommittee about the need for workers to be able to choose free from coercion whether they want a union hierarchy in their workplace.

Marlene Felter, a Chapman Medical Center worker who led an effort to stave off unwanted Service Employees International Union (SEIU) boss “representation” from her workplace, and attorney Glenn Taubman, who has over 30 years of experience on the Foundation’s legal staff, will testify before the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce’s Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions at 10:00 AM.

Click here to read the full release.

Washington, DC (June 26, 2013) – An Orange County, California hospital worker and her National Right to Work Foundation staff attorney will testify today before a U.S. House subcommittee about the need for workers to be able to choose free from coercion whether they want a union hierarchy in their workplace.

Marlene Felter, a Chapman Medical Center worker who led an effort to stave off unwanted Service Employees International Union (SEIU) boss “representation” from her workplace, and attorney Glenn Taubman, who has over 30 years of experience on the Foundation’s legal staff, will testify before the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce’s Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions at 10:00 AM.

Felter will highlight the need for the Secret Ballot Protection Act, sponsored by Congressman David Roe (R-Tenn.), while testifying about her personal experiences dealing with a coercive SEIU card check unionization campaign.

Felter and her coworkers were a target of an SEIU card check unionization scheme after SEIU Healthcare Workers West and Chapman Medical Center officials entered into a backroom deal known as a “neutrality agreement” designed to grease the skids for workers to be forced into union ranks. In the agreement, management granted union operatives access to company facilities and waived the right to have a federally-supervised secret ballot election to determine whether workers wished to be unionized.

Union organizers frequently use card-check organizing tactics to bribe, browbeat, or cajole workers into forced-union-dues payments against their will.

The Secret Ballot Protection Act guarantees workers a secret ballot vote in union elections. The subcommittee will also hear testimony regarding the Representation Fairness Restoration Act, which would invalidate the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)’s policy of allowing union militants to target and organize small units of workers if they know most employees at a workplace don’t want to join the union.

“Time and again, Barack Obama’s NLRB has failed to protect workers who wish to refrain from union affiliation and forced dues payments,” said Mark Mix, President of National Right to Work. “Congress needs to reign in Obama’s out-of-control NLRB.”

Portland, OR (June 26, 2013) – With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, a local UPS employee has filed federal unfair labor practice charges against Teamsters Local Union No. 81. Steven Swenson alleges that union officials failed to provide him with legally required information about the amount of union dues that he has to pay as a condition of employment. When Swenson refused to pay up until he received proper information, Teamster bosses responded by threatening to suspend him from work.

In Oregon and other states without Right to Work laws, employees can be forced to pay union dues just to keep a job. However, workers have the right to refrain from paying for union activities unrelated to workplace bargaining, such as political activism and members-only events. Union officials are required by law to provide nonmembers with an independently-audited breakdown of union expenditures to help them determine how much they can be forced to pay.

In January 2013, Swenson notified the union that he was resigning his membership and exercising his right to opt out of any dues unrelated to workplace bargaining. In May, Swenson received letters from the union indicating the amount of money he was expected to pay as a nonmember. However, the union never provided Swenson with any information about how they arrived at the fees they were charging him.

When Swenson refused to pay until he received information on the union’s expenditures, Teamster bosses demanded he comply with their forced dues exaction or be suspended from work. Swenson paid under protest what the Teamsters claimed he owed to keep his job.

Swenson’s charges will now be investigated by the National Labor Relations Board, a federal agency responsible for administering private sector labor law.

“Teamster bosses failed to provide Steven Swenson with any information about the dues he was being charged. When he refused to pay up until they complied with their legal obligations, they thuggishly threatened his livelihood,” said Patrick Semmens, Vice President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “These abusive practices demonstrate the need for an Oregon Right to Work law, which would ensure that nonunion workers don’t have to pay any dues to unions they want nothing to do with.”

Washington, DC (June 25, 2013) – The National Right to Work Foundation, a charitable organization that provides free legal assistance to employees nationwide, is joining the Nevada Policy Research Institute and a host of other organizations to commemorate National Employee Freedom Week. The weeklong event is dedicated to informing employees across the country of their rights to refrain from union membership and the payment of full union dues.

Employee Freedom Week was originally conceived by the Nevada Policy Research Institute as a way to reach employees who may be unaware of or misinformed about their workplace rights. As a leading organization dedicated to fighting compulsory unionism, the National Right to Work Foundation has been involved in efforts to raise employee awareness of their rights to refrain since its founding in 1968.

The Foundation has distributed video segments online explaining worker rights, broadcast public service announcements on radio programs across the country, and published numerous opinion pieces in local and national outlets on the importance of informing workers about their rights to refrain from union membership and the payment of full union dues.

Moreover, Foundation staff attorneys have litigated for workers in all 50 states to enforce employees’ rights to opt out of union membership. In fact, the scofflaw union that originally inspired National Employee Freedom Week – the Clark County Education Association – was once the target of a Foundation unfair labor practice charge aimed at helping a Nevada teacher resign his union membership.

Foundation attorneys have won several significant Supreme Court cases that limit Big Labor’s forced-dues powers and protect workers’ rights to refrain from union activity. Last year, Foundation attorneys won the Knox v. SEIU Supreme Court case, establishing an important legal precedent outlined in the decision’s majority opinion: “When a public sector union imposes a special assessment or dues increase, the union must provide [a notice of the purpose of the assessment or increase] and may not exact any funds from nonmembers without their affirmative consent.” Because of that case, SEIU bosses must soon refund over $8 million in illegally-seized fees (including interest) to nonunion employees.

“Thanks in part to Big Labor, which thrives on misleading employees, many workers are simply unaware of their rights to refrain from union membership and the payment of full union dues,” said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation. “In fact, workers in the 24 states with Right to Work laws cannot be required to pay any union dues as a condition of employment.”

“It’s vital that workers are informed of these important rights, and National Employee Freedom Week is a great way to spread the message,” continued Mix.

Supreme Court to Hear National Right to Work Foundation Case Challenging Backroom Union Organizing Deal

Right to Work legal challenge could determine if companies are allowed to hand over sensitive employee information to aggressive union organizers

Washington, DC (June 24, 2013) – Today, the United States Supreme Court announced that it is granting a writ of certiorari in Mulhall v. UNITE HERE, a case that could determine if companies are allowed to hand over workers’ personal information to union organizers in exchange for union concessions, among other things.

In 2004, UNITE HERE Local 355 and Mardi Gras Gaming entered into an agreement in which union officials promised to spend over one hundred thousand dollars on a gambling ballot initiative and guaranteed not to picket, boycott, or strike against Mardi Gras facilities.

In return, Mardi Gras agreed to give union operatives employees’ personal contact information (including home addresses) and grant access to company facilities during a coercive ‘card check’ organizing campaign, refrain from informing workers about the downsides of unionization, and refrain from requesting a federally-supervised secret ballot election to determine whether employees unionized.

Click here to read the full release.

Washington, DC (June 24, 2013) – Today, the United States Supreme Court announced that it is granting a writ of certiorari in Mulhall v. UNITE HERE, a case that could determine if companies are allowed to hand over workers’ personal information to union organizers in exchange for union concessions, among other things.

In 2004, UNITE HERE Local 355 and Mardi Gras Gaming entered into an agreement in which union officials promised to spend over one hundred thousand dollars on a gambling ballot initiative and guaranteed not to picket, boycott, or strike against Mardi Gras facilities.

In return, Mardi Gras agreed to give union operatives employees’ personal contact information (including home addresses) and grant access to company facilities during a coercive ‘card check’ organizing campaign, refrain from informing workers about the downsides of unionization, and refrain from requesting a federally-supervised secret ballot election to determine whether employees unionized.

With the help of Foundation staff attorneys, Mardi Gras Gaming employee Martin Mulhall filed a lawsuit challenging this organizing pact in 2008. Under the Labor Management Relations Act, employers are prohibited from handing over “any money or other thing of value” to union organizers, a provision that is supposed to prevent union officials from selling out workers’ rights in exchange for corporate concessions. Mulhall argued that the company’s concessions were of substantial monetary value because they made UNITE HERE’s organizing drive easier and less expensive.

Mulhall won a significant victory last spring, when the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the company’s organizing assistance could constitute “a thing of value.” UNITE HERE lawyers quickly appealed the decision to the Supreme Court, prompting Foundation attorneys to file a cross-petition asking the Court to review certain aspects of the Eleventh Circuit’s ruling.

Foundation attorneys believe that the Eleventh Circuit’s decision was too narrowly tailored to prevent companies from aiding union organizers with valuable concessions. The Supreme Court will now revisit whether the company’s organizing assistance constitutes “a thing of value.”

“We hope the Supreme Court will expand upon the Eleventh Circuit’s landmark ruling and ensure that union organizers can’t cut backroom deals with management,” said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “Companies shouldn’t be allowed to turn over employees’ personal information to unscrupulous Big Labor organizers as a negotiating tactic.”

Worker Advocate Offers $10,000 Reward’s Cars

Worker alleges union militants threatened non-striking workers and their families; police reports show two vehicles damaged during the same night

Chicago, IL (June 18, 2013) – The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation has announced today a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrests and convictions of those responsible for damaging a South Water Market, Inc. worker’s personal and work vehicles during a Teamster union strike.

With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, the Chicago-area South Water Market worker filed a federal charge last week against the Teamsters Local 703 union alleging that union militants threatened him, his family and his property, and that his personal property was damaged shortly after he received those threats.

Click here to read the full release.

Chicago, IL (June 18, 2013) – The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation has announced today a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrests and convictions of those responsible for damaging a South Water Market, Inc. worker’s personal and work vehicles during a Teamster union strike.

With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, the Chicago-area South Water Market worker filed a federal charge last week against the Teamsters Local 703 union alleging that union militants threatened him, his family and his property, and that his personal property was damaged shortly after he received those threats.

The worker filed the charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) regional office in Chicago.

Teamsters Local 703 has been on strike at South Water Market. However, some of the workers are not union members and refuse to abandon their jobs. Under federal law, workers who are not union members cannot be disciplined for continuing to work during a strike.

According to the worker’s federal charge, union agents harassed and threatened nonmember workers who continue working to support their families. In the charge, the worker states that his personal property was damaged soon after the threats. The worker is seeking compensatory damages.

Two Chicago Police Department “Victim of Information Notices” reflect reports of property damage, one incident “by fire.”

A video posted on Youtube.com purports to show security camera footage of a South Water Market work truck on fire while someone on the sidewalk watches. The video also shows the purported damage to the truck after the fire was extinguished. Moreover, the video shows striking Teamster union militants asking each other “are we gonna kill ’em or what?” and stating that they are going to “test the guys out today” while posing like boxers.

“Far too often union violence in America goes unpunished,” said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “We hope this reward will help bring these criminals to justice.”

Anyone involved in the crimes is not eligible for a reward. The Foundation will decide who, if anyone, has earned the reward, and the reward may be split among multiple informants.

Bakersfield, CA (June 18, 2013) – A California District Court Judge has issued an order setting interest rates for the refund of an illegally-seized forced dues assessment by Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 1000 from thousands of California civil servants in 2005. The order results from last year’s Knox v. SEIU Supreme Court ruling, which held that the SEIU’s collection of union dues for political activism violated the rights of nonunion employees, who were never given notice of the assessment or an opportunity to opt out.

Diane Knox and her seven co-plaintiffs were represented by National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, who provided them with free legal assistance throughout their long legal battle.

SEIU lawyers had argued that nonmembers’ refunds should be calculated using the near-historically low interest rates applying at the end of the legal battle. The court disagreed, using rates that prevailed at the time the monies were seized in 2005 and 2006, 21-29 times higher than the rate the union sought.

According to preliminary estimates, the total judgment for refunds could cost the SEIU up to eight million dollars.

The final judgment concludes a prolonged legal challenge affecting some 42,000 California government employees. In 2005, union officials imposed a “special assessment” to raise money from all state employees subject to SEIU monopoly bargaining, regardless of their membership status. The fund was used to defeat a series of ballot proposals, including one that would have revoked public employee unions’ special privilege of using forced fees for politics without affirmative employee consent. Civil servants who refrained from union membership were given no chance to opt out of paying for the SEIU’s political assessment, which union officials labeled a “political fight back fund.”

On June 21, 2012, the Supreme Court issued a 7-2 decision that struck down the SEIU’s forced-dues fundraising scheme. A 5-4 majority went further and ruled that any future special assessments cannot be seized from nonmembers unless they affirmatively consent – or “opt in.”

“Eight years after the forced assessments began, tens of thousands of nonunion California civil servants are finally about to get their money back from SEIU bosses,” said Patrick Semmens, Vice President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “Although it’s taken far too long for these workers to receive justice, it’s fitting that in the process of winning this case at the Supreme Court, we’ve also expanded the protections nonunion workers enjoy to refrain from paying for union politics.”

Local Unions Attempt to Circumvent Indiana’s Right to Work Law

Union officials game system to collect union dues and fees despite Indiana’s popular Right to Work law

Indianapolis, IN (June 14, 2013) – In separate cases, two Indianapolis-area workers have filed charges against two local unions for violating their rights to refrain from union dues payments.

With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, the two workers filed federal unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

In one case, Indianapolis AT&T (NYSE: T) worker Joshua Sterrett resigned membership in the Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 4900 union on January 21, 2013. Even though CWA Local 4900 union officials acknowledged Sterrett’s union membership resignation on January 30, Sterrett alleges that union officials failed to tell him how he could timely revoke his dues deductions. As a result, he is forced to pay union fees for an additional year.

Click here to read the full release.