Washington, DC (September 24, 2014) – After sitting on a case for more than six years, President Obama’s National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) faces federal court scrutiny once again after it issued a ruling that denies long-held federal protections for workers and allows union bosses to keep workers in the dark about their rights.

With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, a former Crawfordsville, Indiana Kroger worker on September 22 asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit to review the NLRB’s decision in her case.

In December 2004, Kroger hired Laura Sands. The next month, United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW) International Union Local 700 officials sent Sands a membership application that failed to inform her of the percentage free reduction she would receive if she did not join the union and objected to paying for union activities unrelated to workplace bargaining.

In the Foundation-won Communications Workers v. Beck case, the U.S. Supreme Court held that workers have the right to refrain from paying for union political and members-only activities. Under federal labor case law, union officials must also provide workers with an independently-audited financial breakdown of all forced-dues union expenditures before they exercise their rights to refrain from union membership. This procedural safeguard helps inform workers of how their forced union dues are being spent and enables them to decide intelligently whether to refrain from membership and object to paying full dues.

After Sands challenged the UFCW Local 700 union officials’ policy of keeping workers in the dark about their rights, her case was appealed in 2008 to the NLRB in Washington, DC. The NLRB then failed to issue a ruling in the case for more than six years.

Sands filed a petition at the DC Court of Appeals asking the court to force the NLRB to act. The court ordered the NLRB to file a brief and even scheduled oral argument on the petition. However, before the argument could be held, the NLRB issued a ruling rubberstamping the UFCW’s illegal policy.

The Board’s ruling flies in the face of longstanding precedent set by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit. The Board’s ruling also comes on the heels of a federal court ruling in Pittsburgh in which the judge stated in his decision that the agency’s conduct in that case “arguably moves the NLRB from its investigatory function and enforcer of labor law, to serving as the litigation arm of the Union, and a co-participant in the ongoing organization effort of the Union.”

“Once again the Obama Labor Board has trampled on workers’ rights to bolster union bosses’ forced dues powers,” said Mark Mix, president of the National Right to Work Foundation. “The Obama NLRB is flaunting long-held court precedent to further expand its legacy as a taxpayer-funded arm for union compulsion.”

Grocery Union Bosses Face Federal Charge for Violating Kroger Workers’ Rights, Ignoring Right to Work Protections

UFCW bosses stonewall Fort Wayne grocery workers’ attempts to cut off forced dues confiscations

Fort Wayne, IN (September 24, 2014) – With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, two Fort Wayne Kroger workers filed a federal charge Monday against a local grocery union for violating their rights.

Eleanor Haynes and Barbara Peter filed the unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against the United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW) International Union Local 700 for ignoring their right to refrain from paying union dues.

Haynes and Peter resigned from the union and revoked their dues deduction authorizations — a document used by union officials to automatically collect dues from workers’ paychecks — effective with the expiration of the union’s contract with their employer. Under federal labor law, workers can unconditionally revoke their dues deduction authorizations when a contract between the union and their employer terminates.

Click here to read the full release.

Fort Wayne, IN (September 24, 2014) – With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, two Fort Wayne Kroger workers filed a federal charge Monday against a local grocery union for violating their rights.

Eleanor Haynes and Barbara Peter filed the unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against the United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW) International Union Local 700 for ignoring their right to refrain from paying union dues.

Haynes and Peter resigned from the union and revoked their dues deduction authorizations — a document used by union officials to automatically collect dues from workers’ paychecks — effective with the expiration of the union’s contract with their employer. Under federal labor law, workers can unconditionally revoke their dues deduction authorizations when a contract between the union and their employer terminates.

Under Indiana’s popular Right to Work law, no worker can be required to join or pay any money to a union.

Despite the workers’ efforts to exercise their rights, UFCW Local 700 union officials continue to confiscate union dues payments from their paychecks.

“These two Kroger workers followed all necessary procedures to exercise their legally-protected right to resign their union membership and cut off union dues,” said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “This case underscores just how important Indiana’s Right to Work law is for workers who want nothing to do with scofflaw union bosses.”

The charge will be investigated by the NLRB regional office in Indianapolis.

Twenty-four states have Right to Work protections for private-sector workers. Public polling shows that nearly 80 percent of Americans and union members support the Right to Work principle of voluntary unionism.

Ebensburg, PA (September 24, 2014) – With the help of National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, a former Pepsi bottling plant employee has just filed charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against his former employer and the Teamsters Local 110 union.

When Michael Romanchock was hired by the plant in June 2013, he was not informed that the Teamsters were the bargaining agent for his workplace. He only learned about the Teamsters’ presence in March 2014, when he received a letter from the union demanding he pay full union dues and union initiation fees.

Under federal law, no employee can be forced to formally join a labor union. Because Pennsylvania lacks a Right to Work law, nonunion employees can be required to pay dues for workplace bargaining. However, they cannot be forced to pay dues for anything unrelated to that purpose, such as political lobbying or union-only benefits.

Not only did Teamster officials attempt to extract full union dues and initiation fees from Romanchock, they also failed to provide him with any information regarding how much he would owe if he remained a nonmember. Under federal law, union officials are obligated to provide financial information to objecting nonunion workers to help them determine how much they’re required to pay.

In May 2014, Teamster officials informed Romanchock that they would have him fired by Pepsi if he refused to pay up. In June 2014, a Pepsi human resources representative told Romanchock that if he did not pay the Teamsters by July 1, he would be fired. On July 1, 2014, Romanchock was fired by Pepsi at the behest of union officials.

Romanchock’s charges will now be investigated by the NLRB, a federal agency charged with administering private sector labor law.

“Teamster bosses and pliant Pepsi officials fired a man for refusing to pay full dues and initiation fees to a union he had no interest in joining,” said Patrick Semmens, Vice President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “We hope the NLRB will rectify this injustice immediately, but until Pennsylvania makes union membership and dues payments voluntary by passing a Right to Work law, this type of workplace abuse will continue.”

Disney World Worker Files Federal Charge Against Teamsters Union Officials for Ignoring His Rights

Workers’ rights do not magically disappear in “The Most Magical Place on Earth”

Lake Buena Vista, FL (September 16, 2014) – With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, a Walt Disney World worker filed a federal charge Monday against a local union for violating his rights.

Winter Garden resident Hector Santana-Quintana filed the unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against Teamsters Local 385 for ignoring his right to refrain from paying union dues.

On June 1, 2014, Santana-Quintana resigned from the union and revoked his dues deduction authorization – a document used by union officials to automatically collect dues from workers’ paychecks – while the union did not have a contract at his workplace.

Under Florida’s popular Right to Work law, no worker can be required to join or pay any money to a union. Under federal labor law, workers can unconditionally revoke their dues deduction authorizations once a contract between the union and their employer terminates.

Click here to read the full release.

Lake Buena Vista, FL (September 16, 2014) – With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, a Walt Disney World worker filed a federal charge Monday against a local union for violating his rights.

Winter Garden resident Hector Santana-Quintana filed the unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against Teamsters Local 385 for ignoring his right to refrain from paying union dues.

On June 1, 2014, Santana-Quintana resigned from the union and revoked his dues deduction authorization – a document used by union officials to automatically collect dues from workers’ paychecks – while the union did not have a contract at his workplace.

Under Florida’s popular Right to Work law, no worker can be required to join or pay any money to a union. Under federal labor law, workers can unconditionally revoke their dues deduction authorizations once a contract between the union and their employer terminates.

Despite Santana-Quintana’s efforts to exercise his rights, Teamster Local 385 union officials continue to confiscate full union dues payments from his paychecks.

“Teamster union bosses are refusing to honor this worker’s legally-protected right to resign his union membership and cut off union dues,” said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “To Teamster union bosses’ chagrin, federal and state statutory protections for workers still apply in the so-called ‘Magic Kingdom’.”

The charge will be investigated by the NLRB regional office in Tampa.

Ohio Teachers Win Class-Action Settlement to Halt Compulsory Union Dues for Political Activism

Ohio teacher union bosses forced to refund dues and fees illegally used for union electioneering to over 2,000 teachers

Columbus, OH (September 11, 2014) – With free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation, 14 public school teachers across the state have won a federal class-action settlement against the Ohio Education Association (OEA) and 11 of its regional and local affiliates for violating their rights.

The settlement is in a class-action lawsuit the group filed in 2011 after the OEA union unlawfully overcharged the teachers — who have refrained from full-dues-paying union membership — for union “fees” taken from their paychecks. The union hierarchy charged the teachers for costs supporting the union’s political activism and electioneering.

Click here to read the full release.

Columbus, OH (September 11, 2014) – With free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation, 14 public school teachers across the state have won a federal class-action settlement against the Ohio Education Association (OEA) and 11 of its regional and local affiliates for violating their rights.

The settlement is in a class-action lawsuit the group filed in 2011 after the OEA union unlawfully overcharged the teachers — who have refrained from full-dues-paying union membership — for union “fees” taken from their paychecks. The union hierarchy charged the teachers for costs supporting the union’s political activism and electioneering. Per Foundation-won U.S. Supreme Court precedent in Abood v. Detroit Board of Education, nonmember teachers cannot be forced to pay dues or fees for union boss politics and other non-bargaining activities under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Additionally, the OEA union’s regional affiliates were collecting compulsory fees from non-members without providing the kind of independently-audited financial statements required by law. In the Foundation-won Supreme Court ruling in Chicago Teachers Union v. Hudson, the High Court ruled that public employees must be notified how their forced union dues are spent to make it less difficult to prevent their dues from going towards union political and member-only expenditures.

The settlement awards more than 2,000 teachers in Ohio nominal damages and/or rebates for union dues illegally-seized from their paychecks during the 2009-2010 to 2012-2013 school years.

“OEA union officials have a long history of abusing teachers’ rights in the workplace to fund their political coffers,” said Mark Mix, President of National Right to Work Foundation. “We applaud these teachers’ commitment to defending their and other Ohio teachers’ rights in this case.”

“Despite this victory, it’s important to remember that the OEA union machine forced nonmembers to pay a large part of the money used to defeat public-sector reforms in the Buckeye State in 2011 — reforms that would have allowed teachers to opt out of forced dues payments all together,” added Mix. “This case underscores the need for Ohio to pass a Right to Work law protecting all of Ohio’s workers.”

Twenty-four states have Right to Work protections for workers. Public polling shows that nearly 80 percent of Americans and union members support the Right to Work principle of voluntary unionism.