Two Federal Civil Rights lawsuits filed against the town and police union after officers were threatened for questioning why 13% of paycheck was being sent to union

Westerly, Rhode Island (July 28, 2015) – Five part-time police officers in Westerly, RI have 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.

Thomas Cimalore, Anthony Falcone, Scott Ferrigno, Darrell Koza, and Raymond Morrone, brought the suit and seek declaratory, injunctive, and monetary relief because a portion of every paycheck (at a rate of $5 an hour) is being confiscated by the town and paid directly to Local 503.

The lawsuit alleges that the plaintiffs’ First, Fifth, and Fourteenth Amendment rights (and other state labor and whistle blower protection statues) 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. After noticing the deductions, the officers brought them to the attention of the town’s payroll department. On July 29, 2014, some of the officers met with the Chief of Police, Edward St. Clair, to express their concerns about the unconstitutional and illegal clause in the agreement between the town and Local 503. The complaint alleges that when the officers told St. Clair they planned to publicly speak out, St. Clair admonished them, noting that as part-time officers they could easily be replaced.

In November 2014, the Town revised its “Detail Assignment System” which it uses to allocate all “private duty” assignments (all part-time officers only work private duty). 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.

“In an elaborate and blatantly unconstitutional scheme, union bosses and bureaucrats joined forces to confiscate 13% of every paycheck from hardworking part-time police officers,” said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation.

“These five individuals simply wanted to serve their community; instead they are forced to subsidize the special interests of union bosses who do not even represent them. The scheme itself is outrageous, but it is just as shameful that, when these officers asked questions about why their rights were being violated, they also found themselves subject to threats and retaliation,” continued Mix.

Union bosses ignored Michigan’s Right to Work law and continued to collect forced dues from seven Mercy Memorial Hospital workers

Monroe, Michigan (July 23, 2015) – Seven workers at Mercy Memorial Hospital in Monroe, MI have won a settlement from Service Employees International Union Local 79 (SEIU) in a case challenging SEIU officials’ failure to obey Michigan’s new Right to Work law and accept the workers’ revocation of a union dues checkoff scheme.

James McGregor, Anna Serra, Mary Sancrainte, Nancy Krueger, Janice Noel, Anna Hoffman, and Susan Harrison, with free legal aid from the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, filed unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against SEIU Local 79 in February of this year.

All seven workers had been members of the union. In late November 2014, the monopoly bargaining agreement between Local 79 and Mercy Memorial Hospital expired. In the weeks just before and after the contract expired, all seven workers resigned union membership and attempted to exercise their new workplace rights under Michigan’s Right to Work law to refrain from paying Local 79 any fees as nonmembers. 

Union bosses ignored Michigan’s Right to Work law and continued to collect forced dues from seven Mercy Memorial Hospital workers

Monroe, Michigan (July 23, 2015) – Seven workers at Mercy Memorial Hospital in Monroe, MI have won a settlement from Service Employees International Union Local 79 (SEIU) in a case challenging SEIU officials’ failure to obey Michigan’s new Right to Work law and accept the workers’ revocation of a union dues checkoff scheme.

James McGregor, Anna Serra, Mary Sancrainte, Nancy Krueger, Janice Noel, Anna Hoffman, and Susan Harrison, with free legal aid from the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, filed unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against SEIU Local 79 in February of this year.

All seven workers had been members of the union. In late November 2014, the monopoly bargaining agreement between Local 79 and Mercy Memorial Hospital expired. In the weeks just before and after the contract expired, all seven workers resigned union membership and attempted to exercise their new workplace rights under Michigan’s Right to Work law to refrain from paying Local 79 any fees as nonmembers.

After a delay, on January 27, 2015, SEIU Local 79 officials accepted the seven workers’ resignations, but rejected the dues checkoff revocations of five of them, continuing to have union dues automatically deducted from their paychecks. Union officials claimed that the method — fax not registered mail — by which the five submitted their dues revocations did not satisfy a bureaucratic requirement imposed by the union.

Thus, these five workers were denied their right to refrain from paying fees to a union, a violation of Michigan’s Right to Work law. Moreover, for one worker, Krueger, the harassment by union officials was even worse. Upon Krueger’s resignation from the union and submission of her dues revocation, union officials produced what appeared to be a forged dues checkoff authorization form which they claimed Krueger had signed in 2013. However, Krueger did not sign any such form in 2013, and the signature appearing on the form is not hers.

Now the workers have prevailed. The settlement recognizes all seven workers as nonmembers, accepts their dues checkoff revocations, and requires Local 79 to reimburse the workers for various amounts of dues deducted after they resigned and revoked.

“Here is a clear demonstration that even with Right to Work protections, workers are never free from harassment and intimidation by union bosses,” said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “Passing Right to Work laws is only the first step in protecting the workplace rights of all workers. Without stringent enforcement of Right to Work laws, union bosses will create illegal hurdles or outright ignore workers’ attempts to cut off all dues and fees, as is their right in the 25 states with Right to Work protections.”

Arizona Fry’s Employees Take Federal Challenge to Illegal Union Dues Scheme to DC Appeals Court

Obama Labor Board rubberstamps years of suspected widespread abuse

Washington, DC (April 22, 2015) – Seven Phoenix-area Fry’s Food Stores employees have appealed their federal case filed after United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 99 union and company officials refused to honor their legal right to refrain from union dues payments.

With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, Shirley Jones of Mesa; Karen Medley and Elaine Brown of Apache Junction; Kimberly Stewart and Saloomeh Hardy of Queen Creek; and Tommy and Janette Fuentes of Florence – acting for other similarly situated employees – filed federal unfair labor practice charges in December 2009 that spurred the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to investigate and issue a statewide complaint against UFCW Local 99 union officials.

Click here to read the full release.

Washington, DC (April 22, 2015) – Seven Phoenix-area Fry’s Food Stores employees have appealed their federal case filed after United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 99 union and company officials refused to honor their legal right to refrain from union dues payments.

With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, Shirley Jones of Mesa; Karen Medley and Elaine Brown of Apache Junction; Kimberly Stewart and Saloomeh Hardy of Queen Creek; and Tommy and Janette Fuentes of Florence – acting for other similarly situated employees – filed federal unfair labor practice charges in December 2009 that spurred the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to investigate and issue a statewide complaint against UFCW Local 99 union officials.

In the midst of a well-publicized UFCW Local 99 union-threatened strike in November 2009, the employees resigned their UFCW union membership and revoked their dues deduction authorizations – a document used by union officials to automatically withhold dues from employee paychecks – while the UFCW union did not have a contract at their workplaces. Despite the employees’ best efforts to halt the dues seizures, Fry’s continued to illegally deduct dues from the employee’s paychecks for the UFCW union hierarchy.

Under Arizona’s popular Right to Work law, no worker can be required to join or pay any money to a union, and under federal labor law, if there is no longer a bargaining agreement in effect between a union and an employer, employees can revoke their dues deduction authorizations at any time.

After a four month long investigation, the Phoenix NLRB regional director initiated a prosecution against UFCW Local 99 union officials for enforcing illegal dues deduction authorizations that do not allow employees to revoke them during contract hiatus periods, contrary to federal law. However, an NLRB administrative law judge rubberstamped the scheme. The NLRB in Washington, D.C. now has upheld the ruling on appeal a second time. The NLRB previously rubberstamped the ruling in a decision later invalidated by the U.S. Supreme Court’s holding in Noel Canning that the Board lacked a valid quorum after President Obama’s unconstitutional 2012 NLRB “recess appointments.”

The seven Fry’s employees are again appealing the NRLB’s ruling to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

“The Obama NLRB has rubberstamped UFCW Local 99 bosses’ years of suspected abuse and violation of thousands of workers’ rights across the state of Arizona,” said Patrick Semmens, vice president of the National Right to Work Foundation. “We applaud these workers’ pursuit for justice on behalf of thousands of workers who may have been illegally forced into paying union dues in violation of Arizona’s Right to Work law.”

Local Sheet Metal Factory Workers File Federal Charges against Machinist Union and Company

Case underscores need for Wisconsin’s new Right to Work law

Allenton, WI (April 22, 2015) – Three Maysteel, LLC sheet metal fabrication factory workers have filed federal charges against a local Machinist union and the company for violating their rights.

With the help of National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, Daniel Sarauer of Campbellsport, Dan Zastrow of Mayville, and Daryl Bartsch of Oakfield filed the charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) regional office in Milwaukee.

International Association of Machinists (IAM) Local Lodge 2053 union officials currently enjoy monopoly bargaining control over the Maysteel workers’ workplace. Previously, the three workers resigned their union membership and exercised their right upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in the Foundation-won Communications Workers v. Beck case to refrain from paying for union political activities and member-only events. Even though they are not union members, they have still been forced to accept the union hierarchy’s so-called representation and pay union fees as a condition of employment.

Click here to read the full release.

Allenton, WI (April 22, 2015) – Three Maysteel, LLC sheet metal fabrication factory workers have filed federal charges against a local Machinist union and the company for violating their rights.

With the help of National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, Daniel Sarauer of Campbellsport, Dan Zastrow of Mayville, and Daryl Bartsch of Oakfield filed the charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) regional office in Milwaukee.

International Association of Machinists (IAM) Local Lodge 2053 union officials currently enjoy monopoly bargaining control over the Maysteel workers’ workplace. Previously, the three workers resigned their union membership and exercised their right upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in the Foundation-won Communications Workers v. Beck case to refrain from paying for union political activities and member-only events. Even though they are not union members, they have still been forced to accept the union hierarchy’s so-called representation and pay union fees as a condition of employment.

Under Wisconsin’s Right to Work law making union dues payments completely voluntary, contracts entered into after the law went into effect must respect workers’ right to refrain from the payment of any union dues.

The three workers have since made multiple requests of the IAM union and the company for copies of their union dues deduction authorizations – a document union officials use to take dues or fees from workers’ paychecks. IAM Local 2053 union officials have refused to provide the workers with copies of their dues deduction authorizations. Meanwhile, company officials have maintained that they do not have any copies of the forms.

“To keep their forced-dues gravy train going as long as possible, Machinist union officials are stonewalling these workers’ requests to learn when they will be able to refrain from paying union dues or fees under Wisconsin’s new Right to Work law,” said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “Schemes like this underscore the importance Wisconsin’s new Right to Work law has for workers who want to exercise their right to refrain from union affiliation once the law applies to their workplaces.”

Three Construction Workers Join Federal Lawsuit Challenging Obama Labor Board’s Ambush Election Rules

Employees argue rules violate workers’ rights to privacy

Washington, DC (April 21, 2015) – Three construction employees have joined a federal lawsuit challenging the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) recently-enacted regulations that further give union organizers the upper hand over independent-minded employees during unionization campaigns.

With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation attorneys, Shannon Cotton, Michael Murphy, and Jorge Gonzalez Villareal, joined a lawsuit pending in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The lawsuit was initially filed by Washington, DC-based construction company Baker DC, LLC seeking an injunction to halt implementation of the new rules.

Click here to read the full release.

Washington, DC (April 21, 2015) – Three construction employees have joined a federal lawsuit challenging the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) recently-enacted regulations that further give union organizers the upper hand over independent-minded employees during unionization campaigns.

With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation attorneys, Shannon Cotton, Michael Murphy, and Jorge Gonzalez Villareal, joined a lawsuit pending in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The lawsuit was initially filed by Washington, DC-based construction company Baker DC, LLC seeking an injunction to halt implementation of the new rules.

The federal Board-mandated rules are designed to dramatically shorten the time individual workers have to share information with their coworkers about the effects of unionization. Most ominously, the regulations require employers to hand over to union organizers workers’ private information, including their personal phone numbers and email addresses.

The ambush election rules were rushed out on December 15, 2014, the last day of former union lawyer Nancy Schiffer’s term on the Board. The NLRB had previously rushed the regulations out before former Service Employees International Union (SEIU) lawyer Craig Becker’s term expired in December 2011, but they were later invalidated by a federal district court in 2012 on procedural grounds.

The three employees who joined the lawsuit object particularly to the part of the rules that requires job providers to hand over employees’ personal information to union officials. They challenge that provision as a violation of workers’ privacy.

“The Obama Labor Board’s latest give-away to Big Labor will ambush unsuspecting workers into union ranks and invades the privacy rights of employees who may oppose unionization in their workplace,” said Mark Mix, president of the National Right to Work Foundation. “We applaud these workers’ stand for the privacy rights of all employees who oppose this federal government dictate that their personal contact information be handed over to unaccountable union organizers against their will.”

The National Right to Work Foundation has previously filed amicus briefs in two other cases pending in federal courts that challenge the new NLRB ambush election rules.

Fort Leonard Wood Food Service Employees Win Refunds in Federal Settlement over Illegal Union Dues Seizures

Company and union officials obstructed workers from exercising rights to refrain from union membership and dues payments

Fort Leonard Wood, MO (April 14, 2015) – With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, two Fort Leonard Wood food service workers have won a federal settlement from a local union for violating their and several of their coworkers’ rights.

In November 2014, Kimsha Rosensteel, an 11-year employee with the Overland Park, Kansas-based food services provider EDP Enterprises, Inc., and coworker Stephanie Fenton filed unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against the National Association of Government Employees (NAGE) Local R14-139 union. Rosensteel later filed a charge against the company.

Click here to read the full release.