Cincinnati, Ohio (June 10, 2002) – Responding to charges brought by Gallia County Public Schools teacher Donna Barnes, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) found the Ohio Education Association (OEA) union guilty of religious discrimination for refusing to respect Barnes’ sincere religious objection to joining or supporting the union.

Enjoying free legal assistance from attorneys with the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, Barnes filed charges against the OEA three years ago. Barnes, a member of the New Life Lutheran Church, objected to supporting the union because it promotes pro-abortion and pro-homosexuality positions. As part of the EEOC’s determination, if the teacher union does not respect Barnes’ status as a religious objector, the OEA will face a federal court suit.

“Unfortunately, this is not an isolated incident. Teachers across the country, regardless of their faith, are being shaken down to pay for this radical agenda,” stated Stefan Gleason, Vice President of the National Right to Work Foundation.

In a ruling publicized last month, the EEOC found that the National Education Association (NEA) union, the OEA’s national affiliate, is systematically discriminating against religious objectors by stonewalling objections and forcing objectors to undergo extensive interrogation on an annual basis. An Ohio teacher, Dennis Robey, brought charges against the NEA and its local affiliates after they refused to honor his religious objection to supporting the union because it promotes pro-abortion, pro-homosexuality positions and constantly attempts to interfere with parental rights.

Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, union officials may not force any employee to support financially a union if doing so violates the employee’s sincerely held religious beliefs. To avoid the conflict between an employee’s faith and a requirement to pay fees to a union he or she believes to be immoral, the law requires union officials to accommodate the employee – most often by designating a mutually acceptable charity to accept the funds.

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 more than 250 cases nationwide per year.