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.

Construction Worker Files Federal Charges Against LIUNA Union and Company for Illegal Firing

Thuggish union boss behavior underscores need for Colorado Right to Work law

Colorado Springs, CO (September 9, 2014) – A former Michels Corporation construction worker has filed federal charges against the company and a local union for violating his rights and illegally firing him for refusing to pay union dues.

With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, Paul Castle of Fountain filed the federal unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

Shortly after Michels hired Castle in August 4, 2014, Laborers’ International Union of North America (LIUNA) Local 578 union officials demanded he join the union and pay union dues as a condition of his employment.

Click here to read the full release.

Colorado Springs, CO (September 9, 2014) – A former Michels Corporation construction worker has filed federal charges against the company and a local union for violating his rights and illegally firing him for refusing to pay union dues.

With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, Paul Castle of Fountain filed the federal unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

Shortly after Michels hired Castle in August 4, 2014, Laborers’ International Union of North America (LIUNA) Local 578 union officials demanded he join the union and pay union dues as a condition of his employment.

Because Colorado does not have Right to Work protections for workers, nonmember workers can be forced to pay union fees as a condition of employment. However, because of a Foundation-won Supreme Court precedent, Communication Workers v. Beck, workers cannot be compelled to pay the portion of union dues used for the union’s political 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.

Castle alleges that when he notified LIUNA Local 578 union officials that he was refraining from union membership and full dues payments, union officials stated that they would not comply with the procedural requirements established under Beck. Furthermore, union officials refused Castle’s good faith efforts to pay the union for dues they claimed he owed.

On August 19, union officials sent a letter to Castle demanding he pay union dues for the months of August and September 2014 or he would be fired. Despite Castle’s efforts to pay the union the full dues he supposedly owed, he was fired at LIUNA union officials’ behest the next day. Adding insult to injury, Michels automatically deducted union dues from his final paycheck.

«No worker should be forced to pay union dues or fees as a condition of employment,» said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. «This thuggish refusal by union officials to follow even the basic federal statutory protections for workers underscores why Colorado needs to pass a Right to Work law making union membership and dues payments completely voluntary.»

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.

Local Security Guards Win Federal Settlement to End Illegal Forced Union Dues Payments

Case underscores need for Maryland Right to Work law

White Oak, MD (September 9, 2014) – Four local Coastal International Security, Inc. security guards have won a federal settlement from a local union and their employer for illegally forcing them into paying union dues and fees.

The settlement comes in the wake of federal charges filed by the security guards with free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys.

In December, Coastal security guard Karif King, who has been employed by Coastal International since 2008, and his coworkers voted to deauthorize the «Union Rights for Security Officers» union, thus revoking the union’s power to force nonmember workers into forced dues payments. Federal law requires that union officials cease forcing nonmember workers into forced dues payments upon request if a majority of workers vote to deauthorize the union’s forced dues powers.

Click here to read the full release.

White Oak, MD (September 9, 2014) – Four local Coastal International Security, Inc. security guards have won a federal settlement from a local union and their employer for illegally forcing them into paying union dues and fees.

The settlement comes in the wake of federal charges filed by the security guards with free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys.

In December, Coastal security guard Karif King, who has been employed by Coastal International since 2008, and his coworkers voted to deauthorize the «Union Rights for Security Officers» union, thus revoking the union’s power to force nonmember workers into forced dues payments. Federal law requires that union officials cease forcing nonmember workers into forced dues payments upon request if a majority of workers vote to deauthorize the union’s forced dues powers.

King and his coworkers Pius Eroraha, Obi Orji, and Grace Rayemo filed charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) after union officials continued to force the workers into forced dues payments despite the workers’ effort to revoke the union hierarchy’s forced dues powers.

Coastal International also faced charges for its role in assisting the union in the collection of union dues payments despite the workers’ repeated requests for the union dues and fees payments to cease.

The settlement requires the union hierarchy to return all illegally-seized union dues, plus interest, and to post informational notices in the workplace informing workers of their right to refrain from union dues or fees.

«These security guards had to file federal charges to force union officials and Coastal International Security management to back off from forcing workers into illegal union dues payments,» said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. «This case underscores why Maryland needs to pass a Right to Work law making union membership and dues payments completely voluntary.»

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.