Miami, FL (April 1, 2010) – With free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation, a Miami-Dade public school teacher has filed unfair labor practice charges challenging a discriminatory policy that prevents nonunion teachers from using representatives of their own choosing during school investigatory interviews.

Shawn Beightol, a veteran chemistry teacher at Michel Krop Sr. High School, was told to report to the Miami-Dade County Office of Professional Standards (OPS) to discuss a possible violation of the school’s email policy last October.

The United Teachers of Dade (UTD) union is the exclusive bargaining agent for the Miami-Dade School District. However, Beightol is a member of the Professional Educations Network of Florida (PENFL), a nonunion teachers association. Although Beightol brought a representative from the PENFL to the October hearing, school officials refused to allow his advisor to participate.

Beightol’s charges allege that the Miami-Dade School District and UTD union officials unfairly discriminate against nonunion teachers by denying them the opportunity to bring private counsel to professional hearings. Although UTD members are entitled to union counsel at investigatory conferences, the teachers’ contract – negotiated by union officials with the school district – forbids private attorneys. This practice effectively discourages teachers from leaving UTD or joining a voluntary teacher association instead of the union.

Florida law explicitly prohibits public employers from encouraging union membership through discriminatory workplace practices. Florida’s popular Right to Work Law also guarantees that no employee – public or private – can be coerced into joining a union or paying union dues.

“This policy is nothing more than an underhanded way to force reluctant teachers into union ranks,” said Patrick Semmens, legal information director for the National Right to Work Foundation. “Union bosses and complicit public school administrators use these discriminatory policies to bludgeon nonmember teachers and voluntary teacher associations for offering workplace alternatives to union monopoly bargaining.”

Beightol’s charges will now be investigated by the Florida Public Employees Relations Commission in Tallahassee.

Falls Church, VA (April 1, 2010) – With free legal aid from staff attorneys at the National Right to Work Foundation, a Giant Food employee has filed unfair labor practice charges against United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 400 union bosses for forcing the employer to deduct union dues from his paycheck even though he exercised his right to refrain from union membership.

In the last six months, Peyman Jamshidi learned that unauthorized deductions were being made from his paycheck for union dues, despite the fact that he informed UFCW local 400 union officials that he did not want to be a union member. Because Virginia is a Right to Work state, Giant Food and UFCW Local 400 cannot require nonmember employees to pay union dues as a condition of employment.

When Jamshidi informed a union official that he was exercising his right to refrain from union membership, the union official still demanded that Jamshidi sign a union membership card for a vague promise of “protection.” Upon receiving the signed card from Jamshidi, the union official wrote on the card that Jamshidi was not to be charged any fees.

In addition to Virginia’s Right to Work law that protects the freedom of association of independent-minded workers, federal law requires union officials to inform employees of their right to refrain from union membership and makes dues deduction check-off procedures entirely voluntary. Other employees in the workplace less informed about their rights may have been illegally coerced into signing union membership cards and authorizing dues deductions.

The Baltimore-based Regional Director of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) will investigate the charges and determine whether to prosecute UFCW Local 400 union bosses before an administrative law judge. Jamshidi demands that the illegal forced dues deductions cease immediately and seeks a full reimbursement of all money deducted from his paycheck without his consent.

Jamshidi’s charges mirror a similar case currently pending before the NLRB Regional Director in San Diego, California. In that case, union officials similarly misled a grocery store worker into signing a union membership card and writing “Beck Decision” on the card, suggesting that he could only be charged union fees related to workplace bargaining in line with the Foundation-won U.S. Supreme Court precedent Communication Workers of America v. Beck. But UFCW local union officials ordered he be fired when he attempted to pay the amount he believed he lawfully owed and not the full union dues and initiation fees the union demanded.

“UFCW Local 400 union bosses’ practice of illegally seizing dues from workers’ paychecks without their consent demonstrates a flagrant disregard for Virginia’s longstanding and popular Right to Work law,” explained Patrick Semmens, legal information director for the National Right to Work Foundation.

“More troublingly, there appears to be a pattern among UFCW local union officials to deliberately and fraudulently coerce workers into joining dues-paying ranks,” continued Semmens. “At least one worker in California has already been illegally fired as a result of this disturbing practice, clearly demonstrating the need for forced-unionism states like California to adopt Right to Work protections for independent-minded workers.”

Legal Aid Foundation Demands Radical Obama-Recess Appointee to Recuse Himself from 12 Pending Cases

New federal labor board member Craig Becker has demonstrated malice against National Right to Work Foundation and pre-judged cases about workplace freedom and union boss malfeasance

Washington, DC (March 29, 2010) – After President Barack Obama installed Service Employees International Union (SEIU) lawyer Craig Becker as a recess appointee to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on Saturday, National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation attorneys are now filing 12 recusal motions asking Becker to step aside in any pending case involving the Foundation.

As associate general counsel of the SEIU, Becker directly litigated against Foundation attorneys and helped orchestrate legal strategies for SEIU affiliates across the United States, so he should recuse himself from cases involving the SEIU or its affiliates. Moreover, his published writings indicate an extreme level of hostility against the Foundation and its legal arguments on behalf of workers, even when the NLRB or United States Supreme Court have agreed and ruled against union officials for their abusive practices.

The Foundation’s free legal aid cases frequently involve unfair labor practices committed by union officials, such as coercive practices to corral workers into union membership and illegal use of fees paid by nonmembers for political purposes. Becker’s record suggests he is unable to give workers who turn to the Foundation for help an impartial hearing and instead will simply rubber-stamp whatever union boss wrongdoings are put before him.

The full press release is available here.  Download two of the motions (PDF) here and here.

Washington, DC (March 29, 2010) – After President Barack Obama installed Service Employees International Union (SEIU) lawyer Craig Becker as a recess appointee to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on Saturday, National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation attorneys are now filing 12 recusal motions asking Becker to step aside in any pending case involving the Foundation.

As associate general counsel of the SEIU, Becker directly litigated against Foundation attorneys and helped orchestrate legal strategies for SEIU affiliates across the United States, so he should recuse himself from cases involving the SEIU or its affiliates. Moreover, his published writings indicate an extreme level of hostility against the Foundation and its legal arguments on behalf of workers, even when the NLRB or United States Supreme Court have agreed and ruled against union officials for their abusive practices.

The Foundation’s free legal aid cases frequently involve unfair labor practices committed by union officials, such as coercive practices to corral workers into union membership and illegal use of fees paid by nonmembers for political purposes. Becker’s record suggests he is unable to give workers who turn to the Foundation for help an impartial hearing and instead will simply rubber-stamp whatever union boss wrongdoings are put before him.

“Craig Becker’s radical views on unionization caught the eyes of concerned citizens who normally don’t pay much attention to obscure agencies like the NLRB,” said Patrick Semmens, legal information director for the National Right to Work Foundation. “Becker’s record shows his personal bias and animosity specifically towards our nonprofit organization and generally towards workers who reject unionization or challenge union official abuse.”

In a bipartisan vote, the Senate in February voted against moving the nomination forward over concerns of Becker’s impartiality and whether he would use his seat on the federal agency to bypass a close vote in Congress and replace the secret ballot in workplace unionization drives with intimidating card check campaigns in which union operatives harass workers into signing union authorization cards.

The coercive nature of card check drives is at the heart of some of the cases in which the Foundation has asked for Becker’s recusal. Union lawyers have devised a legal strategy to overturn Dana Corp, a landmark case won by Foundation attorneys in which the NLRB granted employees the ability to file a decertification petition and demand a secret ballot election to toss out union officials from their workplace within 45 days after an employer recognizes a monopoly bargaining agent by card check.

Becker has strongly criticized the Foundation’s mere involvement in Dana, as well as the independent discretion of the NLRB’s General Counsel to put the case before the Board. Foundation attorneys have several Dana decertification petitions pending with the NLRB, but Becker appears to have pre-judged the issues at stake.

“The National Right to Work Foundation is the only charitable organization providing free legal aid to workers victimized by union boss abuse,” continued Semmens. “These workers deserve a fair hearing.”

Escondido, CA (March 22, 2010) – With free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation, a former Vons Grocery employee has filed unfair labor practice charges against United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 135 union officials for misleading him into signing a union card, illegally seizing full union dues from his paycheck, and eventually ordering him fired for attempting to exercise his rights.

In September 2007, Nestor Mendez was told by union officials that he could opt out of union membership and full dues payments by filling out a union membership card and writing “Beck Decision” on top of it. Mendez followed these instructions and wrote a letter in January 2008 informing UFCW officials of his decision not to become a union member.

Under the Foundation-won Supreme Court decision Communications Workers v. Beck, employees can only be forced to pay union dues related to workplace bargaining as a condition of employment. Moreover, union officials are obligated to provide employees with a breakdown of union expenditures to determine how much objecting employees must pay.

Despite his repeated objections, UFCW operatives demanded Mendez pay full union dues, a union initiation fee, and a membership reinstatement fee in the fall of 2009. UFCW officials also failed to provide Mendez with an independent breakdown of union finances.

Although Mendez paid the amount he believed he was required, union officials refused to honor his check and continued to insist he pay the full amount. At union officials’ insistence, Mendez was fired for refusing to pay union membership dues on December 14, 2009.

Mendez’s unfair labor practice charges seek financial compensation for lost wages and reinstatement of his position at Vons Grocery. The charges will now be investigated by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

“Union officials have to resort to trickery and deception when they can’t persuade workers to join a union of their own free will,” said Patrick Semmens, legal information director of the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation. “If union organizers will go this far to coerce a worker into signing a union card to collect a few more dollars, we can only imagine how widespread union intimidation and abuse are during a card check drive when dues from an entire workplace are at stake.”

Under the proposed Card Check Forced Unionism Bill pending in Congress, the secret ballot for unionization elections would be replaced by a system that allows union organizers to personally solicit union authorization cards from employees similar to the union membership card UFCW operatives tricked Mendez into signing.

Pittsburgh, PA (March 12, 2009) – With free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation, Pittsburgh Precision Turned Products employees recently overcame frivolous union boss blocking charges to eject the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE) Local 623 union.

In November 2009, Kathleen Lobodinsky, an employee at Precision Turned Products, solicited signatures from coworkers to hold an election to eject Local 623 from their workplace. Instead of defending their presence to employees, union officials responded by filing spurious blocking charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), alleging that company officials unlawfully assisted Lobodinsky’s efforts to collect employee signatures.

Although Right to Work attorneys helped Lobodinsky assemble evidence to prove she had acted without employer support, union officials withdrew their allegations before the NLRB could dismiss the case. Lobodinsky went on to collect enough signatures to trigger a union decertification election, which took place on February 24, 2010. After supervising the election, the NLRB reported that Precision Turned Products employees voted against the union.

On March 11, the NLRB issued a final certification order, confirming that the union is no longer the monopoly bargaining agent for Pittsburgh Precision Turned Products.

Workers typically face serious obstacles to ejecting an unwanted union. Decertification elections can only take place towards the end of a union’s contract, which can last up to three years, and employees must collect signatures from over one third of the bargaining unit to trigger a vote on the union’s presence. Moreover, union lawyers often resort to spurious legal tactics to delay voting or to deter employees from going through with a decertification election.

Despite these obstacles, Lobodinsky and her coworkers successfully removed Local 623 from their workplace. As a result, Precision Turned Products employees are no longer forced to accept union “representation” and can now bargain individually with the company over terms and conditions of their employment.

“Instead of defending their presence in the workplace, union bosses often resort to frivolous legal schemes to stop employees from voting out an unwanted union,” said Patrick Semmens, Legal Information Director of the National Right to Work Foundation. “Fortunately, Kathleen Lobodinsky and her coworkers weren’t intimidated by the union’s legal maneuverings and prevailed in their efforts to eject unwanted United Electrical bosses from their workplace.”

Washington, DC (March 5, 2010) – The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation has filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request with the National Mediation Board (NMB) seeking records of any communication between two of its three members – both former union officials – and any union official or lobbyist concerning a dramatic rule change proposal on how a union is imposed on non-union railway and airline industry workers.

The NMB, the federal agency tasked with mediating labor disputes within the railroad and airline industries, is poised to roll back 75 years of precedent and change labor union organizing regulations, greasing the skids for union organizers to lock industry workers into union ranks. The new procedure would stack the deck in favor of unionization by granting a union monopoly bargaining power over workers if the union “wins” an election, no matter how few eligible workers actually participate in the vote. In fact, this means that a small bloc of workers could force union boss “representation” on the whole group as opposed to a true majority of all workers deciding for themselves.

Harry Hoglander and Linda Puchala are former union officials with the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) and Association of Flight Attendants (AFA) unions, respectively. Both unions are a major part of an American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) union-led coalition urging the NMB to discard its longstanding policy. President Barack Obama’s appointment of Puchala in 2009 solidified a pro-forced unionism majority on the NMB.

The members voted 2-1 to preliminarily support the controversial change, and NMB Chair Elizabeth Dougherty has criticized the hasty actions of the two members.

In January, Foundation attorneys filed comments and testified with the NMB opposing the rule change and filed a motion seeking the recusal of Hoglander and Puchala as a conflict of interest.

“President Obama repeatedly promised a new era of openness, transparency, and ethics but has repeatedly violated that pledge when it comes to paying off Organized Labor bosses,” said Patrick Semmens, legal information director of the National Right to Work Foundation. “National Mediation Board members should comply with the letter and spirit of that policy by not making rulings that so directly benefit their recent associates, ALPA and AFA union officials, in their quest to force more workers into union ranks.”

The FOIA request seeks correspondence, transcripts or notes of meetings, reports or handouts, proposals, speeches, phone logs, or other writings or recordings between Hoglander or Puchala and union officials concerning the proposed change.

Right to Work Foundation Announces New Addition to Legal Team

Wake Forest-trained attorney dedicated to the cause of individual liberty

Washington, DC (February 26, 2010) – The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation announced today that it has hired Erin Elizabeth Smith of Georgetown, Texas, as an addition to its legal staff.

Smith is a recently sworn in member of the North Carolina State Bar and 2009 graduate of the Wake Forest University School of Law in Winston-Salem, NC.

“Erin Smith brings to the Foundation a real commitment to defending and advancing individual liberty against the looming threat of compulsory unionism,” said Ray LaJeunesse, vice president and legal director of the National Right to Work Foundation.

“She will assist the Foundation’s burgeoning, cutting-edge legal strategies to blunt Big Labor’s well-funded, politically-connected attack on individual worker rights – including its coercive ‘card check’ forced union organizing and misuse of compulsory dues for politics.”

Click here to read the full release.

Washington, DC (February 26, 2010) – The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation announced today that it has hired Erin Elizabeth Smith of Georgetown, Texas, as an addition to its legal staff.

Smith is a recently sworn in member of the North Carolina State Bar and 2009 graduate of the Wake Forest University School of Law in Winston-Salem, NC.

“Erin Smith brings to the Foundation a real commitment to defending and advancing individual liberty against the looming threat of compulsory unionism,” said Ray LaJeunesse, vice president and legal director of the National Right to Work Foundation.

“She will assist the Foundation’s burgeoning, cutting-edge legal strategies to blunt Big Labor’s well-funded, politically-connected attack on individual worker rights – including its coercive ‘card check’ forced union organizing and misuse of compulsory dues for politics.”

As the newest of the Foundation’s eleven staff attorneys, Smith will help build on the Foundation’s litigation record for union-abused workers that includes 14 cases at the United States Supreme Court, seven of which were won in whole or in part. Currently, National Right to Work Foundation attorneys represent thousands of employees in over 200 active cases nationwide.

Before joining the Foundation, Smith served as an intern for both the National Labor Relations Board regional office and for a federal public defender in Winston-Salem. She also was a law clerk for Davis & Hamrick, LLP of Winston-Salem and for the Institute for Justice in Washington, DC.

Smith holds bachelors degrees in History and Political Science from Wake Forest University, where she graduated with honors. She was also a member of the legal honor society Phi Alpha Delta and an executive staff member of the Wake Forest Journal of Intellectual Property Law.

Employee Hits AT&T/Union Officials with Federal Labor Charges Attacking Scheme to Unionize Workers

Fearing lack of support, communications union bosses are attempting to rig election employees initiated to throw out unwanted union

Seattle, WA (February 24, 2010) – With free legal aid from the National Right to Work Foundation, a Redmond-based AT&T Mobility employee filed federal charges after union organizers illegally colluded with company officials to sweep AT&T workers across the state into union ranks in exchange for contract concessions.

Per a so-called “neutrality agreement” between the Communications Workers of America (CWA) union hierarchy and AT&T, workers in a 140-employee bargaining unit (which consists of various locations across the state of Washington) had CWA union monopoly bargaining foisted upon them after a card-check forced unionism campaign. In exchange, union officials agreed with AT&T to subject the employees to a previously negotiated contract which results in lost benefits and perks for the workers.

As part of the agreement, the workers would be swept into the CWA union’s regional monopoly bargaining unit which consists of thousands of employees – making it virtually impossible for them to later organize to remove the union officials’ monopoly bargaining privileges.

Greg Hartmann of Auburn is challenging the pre-recognition negotiations because he and his colleagues were not even aware of the terms either of the neutrality agreement or the employees’ new contract until after the card-check campaign.

Click here to read the full release.