Machinist Union Hierarchy Faces 15 Additional Federal Charges in Wake of Last Summer’s Caterpillar Strike

Union officials demand at least hundreds of thousands of dollars in strike fines from workers

Chicago, IL (April 17, 2013) – With free legal aid from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, 15 additional Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) workers have filed federal charges against a local Machinist union for violating their rights and levying retaliatory strike fines against them in the wake of last summer’s union boss-instigated strike against Caterpillar.

The 15 workers join 24 other workers who filed similar charges late last month and two who filed charges late last year with free legal assistance from Foundation attorneys.

Click here to read the full release.

Chicago, IL (April 17, 2013) – With free legal aid from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, 15 additional Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) workers have filed federal charges against a local Machinist union for violating their rights and levying retaliatory strike fines against them in the wake of last summer’s union boss-instigated strike against Caterpillar.

The 15 workers join 24 other workers who filed similar charges late last month and two who filed charges late last year with free legal assistance from Foundation attorneys.

On May 1, 2012, International Association of Machinists (IAM) District Lodge 851 union bosses ordered all of the over 800 Joliet Caterpillar workers on strike. The 41 workers who have filed charges to date were among the over hundred workers who worked despite the IAM union boss demands.

Under federal law, workers who are not voluntary union members are exempt from the union hierarchy’s constitution and bylaws and thus cannot be disciplined for continuing to work during a union boss-ordered strike. However, IAM Local 851 union bosses recently levied fines totaling hundreds of thousands to over a million dollars against the workers for continuing to work during the strike.

Some workers allege that they were never truly voluntary union members because IAM Lodge 851 union officials never informed them of their right to refrain from union membership. Some workers were even illegally told that union membership was mandatory as a condition of their employment when they tried to resign membership. Others have additional defenses.

Some workers allege that union officials gave them permission that it was acceptable to go back to work to continue to support their families. One worker alleges that union militants threatened him with violence if he returned to work. Two others allege union officials illegally charged them for union dues at times when they were briefly laid off from their jobs at Caterpillar.

«As more abused Caterpillar workers come forward, the pattern of rights abuses perpetrated by IAM union bosses becomes clearer,» said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. «The ugly aftermath of the Caterpillar strike underscores the need for an Illinois Right to Work law. IAM union bosses have become so mad with their forced-dues power that it appears their standard operating procedure is simply to intimidate and otherwise violate the rights of Caterpillar workers who do not toe the union line.»

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

Four Workers Move to Defend Michigan’s Right to Work Law against Union Boss Federal Lawsuit

New state law frees workers from paying compulsory union dues as a condition of employment

Detroit, MI (April 16, 2013) – Four Michigan workers have moved to intervene in a Big Labor-backed federal lawsuit challenging Michigan’s newly-enacted Right to Work law, which frees workers from paying union dues just to get or keep their jobs.

With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, workers Terry Bowman and Brian Pannebecker, who work for Ford Motor Company in Ypsilanti and Sterling; Aaric Aaron Lewis, who works for AT&T in Kalamazoo; and Robert G. Harris, who works for Aunt Millie’s Bakery in Jackson, filed the motion to intervene today in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. The four workers are forced to financially support a union in order to keep their jobs.

Click here to read the full release.

Detroit, MI (April 16, 2013) – Four Michigan workers have moved to intervene in a Big Labor-backed federal lawsuit challenging Michigan’s newly-enacted Right to Work law, which frees workers from paying union dues just to get or keep their jobs.

With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, workers Terry Bowman and Brian Pannebecker, who work for Ford Motor Company in Ypsilanti and Sterling; Aaric Aaron Lewis, who works for AT&T in Kalamazoo; and Robert G. Harris, who works for Aunt Millie’s Bakery in Jackson, filed the motion to intervene today in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. The four workers are forced to financially support a union in order to keep their jobs.

If granted, the workers’ motion to intervene would make them full participants in the lawsuit.

In February, the Michigan State AFL-CIO union, the union-affiliated group Change to Win, and the AFL-CIO-affiliated Michigan State Building and Construction Trades Council union filed a federal lawsuit claiming that federal labor law preempts Michigan’s Right to Work law.

However, federal labor law explicitly gives states the power to pass Right to Work laws. National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys have successfully defended state Right to Work laws from union-backed challenges numerous times, and the U.S. Supreme Court has long held that state Right to Work laws are constitutional.

Government Union Bosses Face Federal Suit for Illegal Forced Dues Scheme

Right to Work Foundation attorneys challenge union hierarchy for violating civil servant’s constitutional rights

Philadelphia, PA (April 10, 2013) – A Downingtown Area School District school teacher has filed a federal lawsuit against a local union and the school district for violating her rights and refusing to follow federal disclosure requirements.

Maria del Carmen Gonzalez Tucker filed the suit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania located in Philadelphia with free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys.

Click here to read the full release.

Philadelphia, PA (April 10, 2013) – A Downingtown Area School District school teacher has filed a federal lawsuit against a local union and the school district for violating her rights and refusing to follow federal disclosure requirements.

Maria del Carmen Gonzalez Tucker filed the suit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania located in Philadelphia with free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys.

Tucker resigned from formal union membership in the Downingtown Area Education Association (DAEA), an affiliate of the Pennsylvania Education Association and the National Education Association (NEA) unions, in early December 2012.

The U.S. Supreme Court has long held that workers have the unconditional right to refrain from union membership at any time. Additionally, the Court ruled in the Foundation’s Chicago Teachers Union v. Hudson case that union officials must 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.

Despite Tucker’s resignation, DAEA union officials notified her that she «will be part of the DAEA through the 2012-2013 school year.» Tucker’s suit alleges that the school district continues to deduct full union dues from her paychecks at union officials’ behest even though the union hierarchy has refused to follow the federal disclosure requirements outlined by the U.S. Supreme Court in Hudson.

Tucker is asking the court to halt the deduction of full union dues from her paychecks until she receives proper disclosure and to order a refund of any illegally-seized union dues and fees. The suit also challenges as unconstitutional two Pennsylvania laws that purport to grant union officials the power to force nonmember workers into paying full union dues against their will.

«Because Pennsylvania does not have a Right to Work law, union bosses can compel nonmember workers into paying union dues and fees as a condition of employment,» said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. «This case underscores why Pennsylvania needs a Right to Work law making union affiliation and dues payments completely voluntary.»

Hostess Delivery Driver Wins $47,000 in Federal Case Challenging Teamster Union Boss Discrimination

Teamster union bosses sought to punish worker for refraining from union membership

Tulsa, OK (April 4, 2013) – An Interstate Bakeries Wonder Bread/Hostess delivery driver has won over $47,000 in back pay and reimbursement from a local Teamster union and the company in a union discrimination case that the union twice appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Oklahoma worker Kirk Rammage received free assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation during his seven year legal battle challenging a local Teamster union’s discriminatory policy.

Click here to read the full release.

Tulsa, OK (April 4, 2013) – An Interstate Bakeries Wonder Bread/Hostess delivery driver has won over $47,000 in back pay and reimbursement from a local Teamster union and the company in a union discrimination case that the union twice appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Oklahoma worker Kirk Rammage received free assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation during his seven year legal battle challenging a local Teamster union’s discriminatory policy.

Rammage was the single nonunion sales representative with Dolly Madison for over 15 years before his division was merged in 2005 with Wonder Bread/Hostess. Although the company initially wanted to protect Rammage’s seniority during the merger, Teamsters Local 523 union officials insisted that union members receive preferential treatment by putting Rammage at the bottom of the seniority roster despite his longer workplace tenure. The company later caved in to the union bosses’ demand.

By insisting that Rammage lose his seniority, Teamster officials effectively signaled that union workers took priority over their nonunion colleagues. As a result, Rammage was forced to commute to a new work location more than 70 miles away.

After Rammage filed federal charges against the union, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ruled against the discriminatory Teamster-imposed policy. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit upheld the NLRB’s decision on an appeal filed by Teamster union lawyers. Those rulings were later nullified by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2009 on the ground that the Board lacked a three member quorum at the time of its decision.

The case then went back to the NLRB. Once the Board had a quorum, the NLRB revisited the facts of the case and again concluded that Teamster officials broke the law by discriminating against employees based on their union representation status. The Tenth Circuit upheld the NLRB ruling again on appeal and slapped Teamster Local 523 with monetary sanctions for the frivolous nature of the union’s lawyers’ second appeal. Teamster union lawyers appealed the case to the U.S. Supreme Court again, but the Court declined to take the case.

The case then went before a NLRB Administrative Law Judge to determine the amount of back pay and damages the union and employer owe Rammage. The judge ruled last week that Rammage is entitled to $47,337 in back pay and reimbursements. That amount will continue to increase due to interest until Rammage is paid by the union hierarchy and/or the company.

«Justice delayed is justice denied and Mr. Rammage has been denied justice for far too long,» said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. «We hope this latest ruling settles the case once and for all.»

SEIU Union Officials Violate Federal Settlement

Worker advocate assists healthcare workers coerced into forced dues union ranks

Sacramento, CA (April 4, 2013) – With free legal aid from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, a Sutter Roseville Medical Center respiratory care practitioner has filed another federal charge against a statewide union for violating a federal settlement by coercing her and her colleagues into paying full union dues even though they are not union members.

In late 2011, Mary Massen won a federal settlement after filing charges against with the Oakland-based Service Employees International Union United Healthcare Workers – West (SEIU-UHW) union with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

Because California does not have Right to Work protections for its workers, Massen, who has exercised her right to refrain from formal union membership, is still forced to pay union fees as a condition of employment. However, because of a Foundation-won Supreme Court precedent in Communication Workers v. Beck, she cannot be compelled to pay the portion of union dues used for the union’s political, lobbying, and member-only activities. Union officials are also legally obligated to inform workers of these rights and to provide workers with an independently verified audit of chargeable and non-chargeable expenses.

Click here to read the full release.

Sacramento, CA (April 4, 2013) – With free legal aid from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, a Sutter Roseville Medical Center respiratory care practitioner has filed another federal charge against a statewide union for violating a federal settlement by coercing her and her colleagues into paying full union dues even though they are not union members.

In late 2011, Mary Massen won a federal settlement after filing charges against with the Oakland-based Service Employees International Union United Healthcare Workers – West (SEIU-UHW) union with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

Because California does not have Right to Work protections for its workers, Massen, who has exercised her right to refrain from formal union membership, is still forced to pay union fees as a condition of employment. However, because of a Foundation-won Supreme Court precedent in Communication Workers v. Beck, she cannot be compelled to pay the portion of union dues used for the union’s political, lobbying, and member-only activities. Union officials are also legally obligated to inform workers of these rights and to provide workers with an independently verified audit of chargeable and non-chargeable expenses.

In the initial case, SEIU-UHW officials failed to provide nonmember employees with the disclosure Beck requires and forced the workers to object annually, a tactic designed to coerce workers into paying full union dues. Additionally, union officials required employees to provide their social security numbers to refrain from paying union dues used for union boss political activities, further discouraging workers from exercising their rights.

The settlement eliminated SEIU-UHW’s annual renewal requirement, stopped union officials from demanding social security numbers from workers exercising their Beck rights, and required union officials to post an informational notice in the workplace.

However, SEIU-UHW union officials have been deducting full union dues from Masson and other nonmembers’ paychecks for 2013, despite their status as nonmembers.

«These scofflaw SEIU union bosses continue to make a mockery of federal labor law,» said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. «California needs a Right to Work law to protect workers from these types of forced unionism abuses in the future.»

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.