San Francisco, CA (January 13, 2015) – With free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation, a California Department of Forestry fire captain has obtained a settlement from his employer that protects his freedom of conscience in the workplace.

John Valentich, a veteran firefighter, objected to a clause in the bargaining agreement between his employer and the CAL FIRE Local 2881 union that requires all employees – even those who are not union members – to “donate” three hours of annual leave each year for union activities. Valentich is a religious objector who wishes to refrain from affiliating with the union because of its support for abortion and same-sex marriage.

In November 2013, Valentich filed charges challenging the annual leave policy with the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in San Francisco.

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act forbids discrimination against religious employees and requires companies and unions to attempt to reasonably accommodate workers’ sincerely-held religious beliefs.

This isn’t the first time Valentich has filed charges to defend his religious convictions from union interference. In 2012, Right to Work attorneys helped Valentich ensure that the union dues he’s required to pay to keep his job were diverted to a charity, instead of being used to fund union activities.

However, Valentich later learned that he still had to support Local 2881 through a union-negotiated policy that required that he donate three days of leave for union activities.

Under the terms of the settlement, CAL FIRE union officials will determine based on Valentich’s salary the monetary equivalent of the three days of leave he is required to hand over. That sum will then be donated to a nonreligious, non-labor charitable organization approved by the State of California.

“No employee should be forced to give time or money to a union he or she has no interest in supporting,” said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “Fortunately, we were able to help Mr. Valentich obtain a settlement that protects his deeply-held religious beliefs.”

“However, many California employees with political or religious objections to supporting a union are still being forced to pay dues,” continued Mix. “That’s why California needs a Right to Work law, which would make union membership and dues payments strictly voluntary.”

The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation is a nonprofit, charitable organization providing free legal aid to employees whose human or civil rights have been violated by compulsory unionism abuses. The Foundation, which can be contacted toll-free at 1-800-336-3600, assists thousands of employees in about 200 cases nationwide per year.