New Michigan Right to Work Laws Take Effect Today
Springfield, VA (March 28, 2013) – In response to Michigan’s Right to Work laws taking effect today, Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation, issued the following statement:
"No worker should ever be forced to join or pay dues to a union as a condition of their employment. That is why Michigan’s new Right to Work laws are great advances for worker freedom. Today, workers in Michigan finally have Right to Work protections.
"In response to recent media reports about union officials seeking to skirt Michigan’s new Right to Work laws, the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, a charitable organization that provides free legal assistance to employees nationwide, has created a special task force to defend workers seeking to exercise their Right to Work.
"Affected employees are encouraged to call the Foundation’s legal hotline at 1-800-336-3600 or contact the Foundation through its website at www.nrtw.org.
"Any worker who wants to learn more about their rights under Michigan’s Right to Work laws should also visit the Foundation’s award-winning website."
Twenty-four states have Right to Work protections for employees. Public polling shows that nearly 80 percent of Americans and union members support the Right to Work principle of voluntary unionism.
Kansas City Police Officers Seek to Handcuff Union’s Forced-Dues Scheme
Kansas City Police Officers Seek to Handcuff Union’s Forced-Dues Scheme
Right to Work Foundation attorneys challenge union hierarchy for violating employees’ constitutional rights
Kansas City, MO (March 27, 2013) – Seventeen Missouri police officers have filed a federal class-action lawsuit against a local police union, the Board of Police Commissions of Kansas City, and the mayor of Kansas City for violating their rights.
The 17 officers filed the suit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri with free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys.
In October of 2012, Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) Lodge 99 union officials agreed to a settlement in a lawsuit between the union and the city in which union officials made concessions on police officers’ wages, benefits, and retirement age in exchange for the power to force nonmember police officers into paying forced union dues and fees as a condition of their employment.
Kansas City Police Officers Seek to Handcuff Union’s Forced-Dues Scheme
Kansas City, MO (March 27, 2013) – Seventeen Missouri police officers have filed a federal class-action lawsuit against a local police union, the Board of Police Commissions of Kansas City, and the mayor of Kansas City for violating their rights.
The 17 officers filed the suit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri with free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys.
In October of 2012, Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) Lodge 99 union officials agreed to a settlement in a lawsuit between the union and the city in which union officials made concessions on police officers’ wages, benefits, and retirement age in exchange for the power to force nonmember police officers into paying forced union dues and fees as a condition of their employment.
The 17 officers, who all refrain from formal union membership in the FOP Lodge 99 union, allege that the union hierarchy violated its duty of fair representation and acted in bad faith by selling out Kansas City’s police officers in exchange for the forced dues powers.
Further, the 17 nonmember officers allege in their suit that the FOP Lodge 99 union hierarchy is violating their constitutional rights by demanding forced union dues and fees from them without following federal disclosure requirements.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in the Foundation’s Chicago Teachers Union v. Hudson case that union officials must first provide nonmember public workers with an independently-audited breakdown of all forced-dues union expenditures and the opportunity to object and challenge the amount of forced union fees before an impartial decision maker. This minimal safeguard is designed to ensure that workers have an opportunity to refrain from paying for union political activities and member-only events.
In February, FOP Lodge 99 union officials began demanding forced union dues and fees from nonmember police officers while refusing to provide an audited breakdown of union expenditures or giving the officers an opportunity to challenge the forced union fees before an independent third party.
“Because Missouri does not have a Right to Work law, these Kansas City police officers can be compelled to pay union dues and fees to a union hierarchy that clearly does not have the officers’ best interests at heart,” said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “This case underscores why Missouri needs a Right to Work law making union affiliation and dues payments completely voluntary.”
Latest Issue of Foundation Action Now Available Online
The latest issue of Foundation Action, the Right to Work Foundation’s bi-monthly newsletter, is now available on our website. Click here to download the .pdf or view the articles online. We’ve also put up the major articles from the January/February 2013 issue on our blog, which I’ve linked to below:
We also encourage you to sign up for a hard copy of Foundation Action (It’s free!). You can subscribe here.
Local School Bus Drivers Slam the Brakes on Union Boss Rights Violations
Local School Bus Drivers Slam the Brakes on Union Boss Rights Violations
Union officials threatened bus drivers: Join the union or be fired
Gresham, OR (March 25, 2013) – A group of local school bus drivers have won a federal settlement including back pay from a local union hierarchy after union officials illegally demanded they join the union or be fired.
The settlement stems from a federal charge six of the drivers filed with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) Regional Office in Seattle with free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys.
Oregon School Employees Association, American Federation of Teachers (AFT) Local 6732 union officials demanded that all drivers join the union and pay full union dues or face discharge.
Local School Bus Drivers Slam the Brakes on Union Boss Rights Violations
Gresham, OR (March 25, 2013) – A group of local school bus drivers have won a federal settlement including back pay from a local union hierarchy after union officials illegally demanded they join the union or be fired.
The settlement stems from a federal charge six of the drivers filed with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) Regional Office in Seattle with free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys.
Oregon School Employees Association, American Federation of Teachers (AFT) Local 6732 union officials demanded that all drivers join the union and pay full union dues or face discharge.
Because Oregon does not have Right to Work protections making union affiliation completely voluntary, the bus drivers can still be forced to pay part of forced union dues to keep their jobs. However, the U.S. Supreme Court has long held that workers have the right to refrain from full-dues-paying union membership, and nonmember workers cannot be required to pay union dues or fees spent for union political activities and member-only events.
AFT Local 6732 union officials confiscated full union dues from the drivers’ paychecks without informing the workers of their right to refrain from formal union membership. Union officials continued to confiscate full union dues from both drivers who refused to join the union and drivers who joined the union with objections because they thought they had no choice.
After the six drivers represented by Foundation attorneys filed the federal charge, union officials were forced to settle the case and also agreed to refund back pay to four other drivers.
“AFT Local 6732 union officials made a mockery of federal law in order to keep their forced dues gravy train going,” said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “This case underscores the need for Oregon to pass state Right to Work protections for its workers.”
Twenty-four states have Right to Work protections for employees. Public polling shows that nearly 80 percent of Americans and union members support the principle of voluntary unionism.
FOUNDATION ACTION: Pennsylvania Construction Worker Digs Up Illegal Union PAC Scheme
NOTE: This article is from the most recent issue of Foundation Action, our bi-monthly newsletter. You can sign up to receive a print edition of the newsletter here.
Pennsylvania Construction Worker Digs Up Illegal Union PAC Scheme
Worker loses his job because he didn’t contribute to "voluntary" union political fund
SCOTTDALE,?PA?– A Pennsylvania-based construction company and a local union are facing federal charges for violating the rights of a former truck driver/laborer.
With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, Jeff Richmond of Meadow Bridge, West Virginia, filed federal unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) regional office in Cincinnati against Penn Line Service, Inc. and Laborers International Union of North America (LIUNA) Local 453.
Told union membership and political contributions were required
In July 2012, when Penn Line Service hired Richmond, company management informed him that the job was a “union job.” Between July and October, the company confiscated, and the LIUNA union hierarchy accepted, full union dues from Richmond’s paychecks even though he had not joined the union nor given authorization for the company to take full union dues from his paychecks.
In October, Penn Line Service management gave Richmond and his coworkers a union membership and dues deductions authorization form. The form included a section for the employees to authorize “voluntary” contributions to LIUNA’s political action committee (PAC), the Laborers’ Political League, and the West Virginia Laborer’s District Council PAC.
Richmond signed up for union membership and dues payments because he was given the impression that union membership was required for him to keep his job. Richmond did not, however, authorize the “voluntary” PAC contributions. Shortly after, Richmond’s supervisor informed him that the union form was being returned for Richmond to fill out completely. The next day, Richmond notified his supervisor he would not sign up for the PAC contributions for moral reasons.
After making a phone call, the supervisor gave Richmond an ultimatum: fill out the form or the supervisor would take him home. Standing by his convictions, Richmond went home.
“Management took me home because I told them I wouldn’t sign the voluntary check off authorization for the [union’s PACs] for moral reasons,” Richmond said. “I didn’t feel that it was right for them to terminate someone because they wouldn’t sign a ‘voluntary’ check off.”
Federal law provides some recourse; more needed
Under federal law, no worker can be forced to formally join a union. Unfortunately, West Virginia does not have a Right to Work law, which means that workers who refrain from union membership can be forced to pay union dues or fees as a condition of employment.
However, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in the Foundation-won Communications Workers v. Beck case that nonmembers have the right to opt out of paying for union activities unrelated to workplace bargaining, such as union boss politics, ideological causes, and members-only events.
Richmond’s charges allege that company and union officials violated his rights by telling him that the union PAC contributions were a condition of employment and terminating him from his job when he refused to pay up. The charge also alleges that company and union officials violated federal law when they failed to inform Richmond of his rights to refrain from union membership and full union dues before confiscating full union dues from his paychecks.
“Bulldozing someone into contributing to a PAC that violates their sincerely-held beliefs is downright unconscionable and also a clear violation of federal law,” said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “Company and union officials often collude to mislead workers into believing that full union dues payments, and in this case so-called ‘voluntary’ union PAC contributions, are a condition of employment while leaving workers unaware of their rights.”
“No worker should ever be forced to pay union dues or fees for a cause with which they disagree,” added Mix. “That is why West Virginia desperately needs to pass a Right to Work law making union membership and dues payments completely voluntary.”
Worker Files Federal Charges against NBC Sports, CWA for Forcing Him to Join Union, Pay Full Dues
Worker Files Federal Charges against NBC Sports, CWA for Forcing Him to Join Union, Pay Full Dues
Case shows why West Virginia’s workers need Right to Work protections
New York, NY (March 11, 2013) – With the help of National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, an NBC Sports technician has filed federal charges against his employer and the NABET-CWA Local 11 union for forcing him to join the union and pay full dues.
Over the past six months, Steve Wahlenmayer has worked as a daily hire for NBC Sports, which is party to a bargaining agreement with the Communications Workers of America (CWA) union. Because New York lacks a Right to Work law, regular employees can be forced to pay union dues as a condition of employment after 30 consecutive days of employment. This means temporary or daily hires cannot be required to pay union dues if they don’t reach the 30-day threshold.
Despite the fact that Wahlenmayer has never worked for NBC for 30 consecutive days, CWA officials and NBC Sports demanded he join the union and sign a dues check-off card authorizing the CWA to deduct automatically dues from his paycheck and to pay a $9,000 initiation fee. Other temporary hires at NBC Sports have faced similar demands.
Worker Files Federal Charges against NBC Sports, CWA for Forcing Him to Join Union, Pay Full Dues
New York, NY (March 11, 2013) – With the help of National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, an NBC Sports technician has filed federal charges against his employer and the NABET-CWA Local 11 union for forcing him to join the union and pay full dues.
Over the past six months, Steve Wahlenmayer has worked as a daily hire for NBC Sports, which is party to a bargaining agreement with the Communications Workers of America (CWA) union. Because New York lacks a Right to Work law, regular employees can be forced to pay union dues as a condition of employment after 30 consecutive days of employment. This means temporary or daily hires cannot be required to pay union dues if they don’t reach the 30-day threshold.
Despite the fact that Wahlenmayer has never worked for NBC for 30 consecutive days, CWA officials and NBC Sports demanded he join the union and sign a dues check-off card authorizing the CWA to deduct automatically dues from his paycheck and to pay a $9,000 initiation fee. Other temporary hires at NBC Sports have faced similar demands.
Moreover, even if Wahlenmayer or his coworkers were employed by NBC for at least 30 consecutive days, federal law prohibits unions and employers from forcing workers to join a union as a condition of employment.
Under protest, Wahlenmayer signed a dues check-off card to protect his job. He is now filing charges to reclaim his confiscated dues with the National Labor Relations Board, a federal agency charged with administering private sector labor law.
“Desperate for more forced dues cash, CWA union bosses are trying to fleece temporary hires in flagrant violation of federal law,” said Patrick Semmens, Vice President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “Unfortunately, NBC Sports is complicit in the mistreatment of their own employees.”
“This illicit practice highlights the need for a New York Right to Work law, which would ensure that no worker can be forced to join or pay dues to a union just to get or keep a job,” continued Semmens.
Video: U.S. Supreme Court Denies Teamster Union Lawyers’ Hail Mary Appeal
Recently the United States Supreme Court rejected an appeal by Teamster union lawyers of a National Right to Work Foundation-won ruling against a local Teamster policy that discriminated against non union workers. Last year, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals slapped Teamster Local 523 with sanctions for filing a frivolous appeal in the case.
For more on the case and other developments in the Foundation’s free legal aid program, watch the video below.
The National Right to Work Foundation relies on voluntary contributions form its supporters to provide free legal aid. To make a tax-deductible contribution, please click here.
