Brevard County, Florida (October 22, 2004) – A local Kennedy Space Center worker filed federal charges against the International Alliance of Theatrical and Stagehand Employees (IATSE) Union Local 780 today after union officials denied his right not to subsidize union politics, failed to provide him with a legally mandated audit of union expenditures, and continued to seize full union dues from his paychecks after he notified them that he objected to joining or paying full dues.

Adam Nehr, an employee of InDyne Inc., which provides video and imaging services to NASA, obtained free legal assistance from attorneys with the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation and filed the unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) after union officials repeatedly denied his right to refrain from formal union membership.

Nehr alleges that, in August 2004, he notified union officials that he would assert his right to refrain from full union membership and paying full union dues. However, union officials repeatedly demanded that he reconfirm his objection, refused to provide an adequate breakdown of union expenditures, and continued to deduct full union dues from his paycheck. The NLRB will now investigate the charge and decide whether to issue a formal complaint in the case.

“Union officials want workers like Adam Nehr to simply shut up and pay up,” said Stefan Gleason, Vice President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “Rather than respect the rights of workers they claim to represent, union officials are bullying workers to pay for political electioneering.”

The actions of IATSE union officials violated Nehr’s rights recognized under the Foundation-won U.S. Supreme Court Communications Workers v. Beck decision. Under Beck and subsequent NLRB rulings, union officials must inform employees of their right to refrain from formal union membership and the right not to be forced to pay for costs unrelated to collective bargaining, such as union political activity.

Florida’s highly popular Right to Work law, on the books since 1968, normally prevents workers from having to pay dues to an unwanted union. However, the part of Kennedy Space Center on which Nehr works is an “exclusive federal enclave” that instead falls under the jurisdiction of federal labor laws that authorize compulsory unionism.

“Unfortunately, even in states like Florida where Right to Work protections exist, workers continue to face such heavy-handed tactics on behalf of union officials,” said Gleason.

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.