The NRTW Foundation issues Special Legal Notice to Seattle-based Independent Drivers who may soon be required to pay union dues or fees to work with ridesharing companies

Springfield, VA (December 14, 2015) – The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation has issued this special legal notice to all Seattle-area independent, for-hire drivers, alerting them to an impending threat to their workplace freedom.

Acting at the behest of Teamsters and other union officials, the Seattle City Council has just passed a bill that targets independent drivers, such as those who contract with Uber and Lyft, for mandatory unionization. The bill authorizes unionization through a coercive and unreliable card check drive and allows union officials to make payment of union dues or fees mandatory, even for drivers who oppose union representation.

The newly enacted bill also requires that for-hire ridesharing companies turn over drivers’ personal information (including home and email addresses, and phone numbers) to union officials seeking to start an organizing campaign, and even allows union officials to skip any secret ballot election to determine driver support for the union, instead relying on the abuse-prone card check process.

All independent drivers in the Seattle area who value their independence, and oppose being forced to submit to mandatory union representation and forced union dues, may contact the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation for free legal assistance and for more information about their rights and legal options.

Drivers may contact a Foundation staff attorney toll free at 1-800-336-3600, or via email to legal@nrtw.org, or by clicking here.

“Big Labor union bosses see independent drivers as prime targets for an expansion of their forced-unionism power,” said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “This legally-dubious scheme will require that in order to keep his or her job, a for-hire driver must pay tribute to a union boss and is part of Big Labor’s nationwide strategy to impose forced union dues requirements on as many Americans as possible.”

“It is outrageous that drivers trying to support their families will have to fork over part of their earnings just for the privilege of driving in Seattle,” added Mix. “This bill is a violation of drivers’ fundamental First Amendment right to freedom of association; the National Right to Work Foundation will proudly offer free legal aid to drivers opposed to this violation of their rights.”

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.