Public Employee Union Faces Federal Lawsuit for Illegal Forced Dues Scheme

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

San Francisco, CA (March 6, 2012) – An Alameda County East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) employee has filed a federal lawsuit against a local union and the public agency for violating his rights.

James C. Hankins filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California in San Francisco with free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation.

Hankins resigned formal union membership from the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 444 more than ten years ago.

However, in April 2011, AFSCME Local 444 and EBMUD officials began to deduct full union dues from Hawkins’s paycheck as if he was a full union member.

Read the entire press release here.

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 about 200 cases nationwide per year.