Rhode Island School of Design Technician Combats Illegal Union Boss Intimidation and Threats

Providence, RI (October 17, 2012) – With the help of National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, a Rhode Island School of Design technician has filed federal charges against a local union for violating his rights.Robert Vennerbeck of Providence filed the federal charge against the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) Technical Association union with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) regional office in Boston.Vennerbeck resigned formal union membership and exercised his right to refrain from full-dues-paying union membership as upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in the Foundation-won Communications Workers v. Beck case. Under Beck, workers have the right to opt out of paying for union activities unrelated to workplace bargaining, such as members-only events and political lobbying.

NLRB Subpoenas Foundation Attorney Assisting Latino Express Workers Who Wish to Oust Unwanted Union

Chicago, IL October 16, 2012 – The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has frozen out Latino Express workers from participating in a dispute between their employer and Teamsters Local 777 that will determine whether they must accept an unwanted union in their workplace. Meanwhile, the NLRB subpoenaed the National Right to Work Foundation staff attorney advising these workers to testify during the Latino Express hearing, a move that prevented him from advising his clients, three of whom also appeared as witnesses. Although a majority of Latino Express employees oppose the Teamsters’ presence and have signed a decertification petition to remove the union, Teamster lawyers filed charges with the NLRB alleging that the company unlawfully withdrew recognition of their union.

West Boca Medical Center Nurses Challenge Corrupt Agreement between SEIU and Hospital

Boca Raton, FL (October 10, 2012) – A local nurse has filed a federal charge against West Boca Medical Center and its parent company for enacting a secret deal that discriminates against the nurses and gives Service Employees International Union (SEIU) operatives preferential access to the facility.With free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation, Registered Nurse Jenna Orlando filed the charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) regional office in Tampa.According to the charge, SEIU union officials entered into a "neutrality agreement" with West Boca Medical Center and its parent company, Tenet Healthcare Corporation. The agreement successfully greased the skids for the nurses unionization.

Longmont Police Officers Hit Police Union, Longmont City Officials with Federal Civil Rights Lawsuit

Denver, CO (October 5, 2012) – Two Longmont city police officers have filed a federal lawsuit against a local Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) union and the city for violating their rights.Cary Nickolls and James Bundy filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado in Denver with free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys.Both Nickolls and Bundy refrain from formal union membership in the Longmont Fraternal Order of Police (LFOP) Lodge 6 union, an affiliate of the Colorado Fraternal Order of Police, and invoked their right to not pay full union dues.

Providence Memorial Nurses Challenge Corrupt Agreement between California Union and Hospital

El Paso, TX (October 3, 2012) – With free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation, an El Paso nurse filed federal charges against a California-based nurse union and Providence Memorial Hospital for enacting a secret deal that gives union organizers preferential access to the facility.Nurse Perry Pielaet filed the charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) regional office in Phoenix.California Nurses Association-affiliated National Nurses Organizing Committee (NNOC) union officials entered into a "neutrality agreement" with Providence Memorial Hospital and its parent company, Tenet Healthcare Corporation, designed to grease the skids for the nurses' unionization.

Workers Challenge Obama Labor Board Recess Appointments in Federal Appeals Court

Washington, DC (October 1, 2012) – National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys filed a brief in yet another legal battle over President Barack Obama's purported "recess appointments" to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).Foundation attorneys filed the amicus curiae brief jointly with the Landmark Legal Foundation on Wednesday in the case Noel Canning v. NLRB, pending now before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.The brief was filed for four workers who are represented by their Foundation attorneys in cases pending before the NLRB.Another direct legal challenge to the Obama recess appointments is a Foundation case pending in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Chicago. That case is among the first in the nation to reach the appellate courts challenging the Obama recess appointments and may help set the standard for all further challenges

U.S. Supreme Court Fails to Correct Dangerous Union Exemption from State Identity Theft Laws

Washington, DC (October 1, 2012) – Today, the U. S. Supreme Court denied a petition to hear a case brought by North Carolina-based AT&T (NYSE: T) employees asking the Court to review two state court decisions regarding a state identity theft law and federal preemption.The workers appealed the case to the Supreme Court with free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys.In the fall of 2007, Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 3602 union president John Glenn maliciously posted the names and social security numbers of 33 AT&T employees on a publicly accessible bulletin board at the company's facility in Burlington, N.C.All the employees whose names and personal information were posted in a hallway close to the building entrance, accessible to the public, had exercised their freedom under the state's Right to Work law to resign from CWA union membership and cease paying union dues.

Mickey Mouse Union Faces Federal Charges for Illegally Threatening Workers’ Jobs

Anaheim, CA (September 25, 2012) – With the help of National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, two Disneyland Resort Grand California Hotel employees have filed federal charges against a local union for violating their rights.Jose Luis Sanchez and Liz Abdul-Nour filed federal charges against the UNITE HERE Local 11 union with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) regional office in Los Angeles.

Teacher Files State Complaints After Union Bosses Violate Act 10, U.S. Constitution

Madison, WI (September 21, 2012) – A former Greenwood, Wisconsin teacher has filed complaints against a local teacher union for illegally refusing to honor her right under the state law commonly referred to as "Act 10" to refrain from union dues payments, and for refusing to follow constitutional disclosure requirements.Amy Anaya filed the complaint with the Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission with free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys.Anaya was a School District of Greenwood teacher for a year, beginning in August 2011, after Act 10 became effective. In September 2011, Greenwood Education Association (GEA) union officials approached Anaya and illegally told her that she "had to" sign the union's membership form. Anaya informed them that she had no desire to become a member of the union.

Worker’s Federal Charge Forces Union Officials to Halt Intimidation Tactics

Johnsonburg, PA (September 14, 2012) – A Johnsonburg Clarion Sintered Metals worker’s federal charge against a Machinist union local has forced union officials to stop threatening workers who want to exercise their right to refrain from formal union membership.Christina Wilson filed the federal unfair labor practice charge against International Association of Machinists (IAM) Local 2448 with free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation.IAM Local 2448 union officials enjoy monopoly bargaining privileges over Wilson's workplace. Because Pennsylvania does not have a Right to Work law, workers can be forced to pay union dues or fees to keep their jobs. However, the U.S. Supreme Court held in the Foundation's Communications Workers of America v. Beck case that workers cannot be compelled to pay for union political activities, lobbying, and member-only events.