SEIU Officials Face Charge for Violating State Pharmacist’s Rights

San Jose, CA (July 10, 2012) – With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, a Santa Clara Valley Medical Center pharmacist has filed a state charge against a local union for illegally refusing to honor his right to refrain from full-dues-paying union membership.Jeffrey Lum of Cupertino filed the charge with the California Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) against Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 521 for illegally forcing him into full union dues payments against his will.

Tenth Circuit Slaps Teamster Union With Sanctions

Denver, CO (July 6, 2012) – The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit has upheld a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ruling against a local Teamster union policy that discriminated against nonunion workers employed by Interstate Bakeries in Oklahoma.Oklahoma worker Kirk Rammage received free assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation during his six and a half year legal battle challenging the Teamster union's discriminatory policy.Rammage was the single nonunion sales representative with Dolly Madison for over 15 years before his division was merged in 2005 with Wonder Bread/Hostess. Although the company initially wanted to protect Rammage's seniority during the merger, Teamsters Local 523 union officials insisted that union members receive preferential treatment by putting Rammage at the bottom of the seniority roster despite his longer workplace tenure. The company later caved in to the union bosses' demand.

Union Bosses Forced to Settle Federal Charges After Illegally Levying Retaliatory $7,300 Strike Fine Against Worker

Kansas City, MO (July 3, 2012) – A Honeywell nuclear assembly worker has won a settlement from a local union for retaliating against him for exercising his right to refrain from union membership and continue to work during a union boss-instigated strike.With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, Daniel Gudde filed a federal charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) regional office in Overland Park, Kansas after union officials levied a $7,361.36 fine against him.Gudde began working at Honeywell in late September, believing he had to join the International Association of Machinist (IAM) Local Lodge 778 union. In early October, IAM Local 778 union officials instigated a strike. Gudde and three of his coworkers were unsure if they had to go on strike as union members or if they had to fulfill a required 30-day probationary period of employment.

Federal Agency to Prosecute SEIU and Local Hospital for Rigging Union Card Check ‘Vote’

Orange, California (June 27, 2012) – The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) Regional Director in Los Angeles has authorized the issuance of a complaint against a major healthcare union and hospital officials for forcing workers to accept an unwanted union in the workplace.With free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation, Marlene Felter of Costa Mesa filed charges with the NLRB after Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Healthcare Workers West officials and Chapman Medical Center colluded to illegally rig a union organizing "vote" to pave the way for the union to claim to "represent" the workers.

Government Union Officials Sic Collection Agency on Unsuspecting Public Defender for Illegal Forced Dues

Albuquerque, NM (June 26, 2012) – With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, a public defender from the Alamogordo office of the New Mexico Public Defender Department has filed a charge against a local union for wrongfully charging her with failure to pay union dues for the past five years.Nancy Fleming filed the charge with the New Mexico Public Employee Labor Relations Board against American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) New Mexico Council 18 union for illegally trying to confiscate forced union dues payments from her paycheck without notifying her that she was in the union’s monopoly bargaining unit and refusing to follow federal disclosure requirements.

Victory: Supreme Court Strikes Down SEIU Scheme to Force CA Nonunion State Employees to Fund Union Politics

Supreme Court Strikes Down SEIU Scheme to Force CA Nonunion State Employees to Fund Union Politics National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation attorneys close union boss political fundraising loophole, winning again at U.S. Supreme Court Washington, DC (June 21, 2012) - The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 7-2 today, siding with nonmember California state employees challenging a Service Employees International Union (SEIU) political fee charged to them without notice and opportunity to opt out.

Supreme Court Strikes Down SEIU Scheme to Force CA Nonunion State Employees to Fund Union Politics

Washington, DC (June 21, 2012) - The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 7-2 today, siding with nonmember California state employees challenging a Service Employees International Union (SEIU) political fee charged to them without notice and opportunity to opt out.The case concludes a prolonged legal challenge affecting some 36,000 California government employees initiated by eight California civil servants who filed a class-action lawsuit with free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation.

Union Officials at Central Michigan University Face State Prosecution for Illegal Dues Seizures

Lansing, MI (June 11, 2012) – With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, a temporary instructor at Central Michigan University (CMU) has spurred a state prosecution against a local union for violating her First Amendment rights.Nancy Rusch of St. Louis, filed a charge with the Michigan Employment Relations Commission (MERC) against the Union of Teaching Faculty (UTF) union for illegally confiscating union dues payments from her and her coworkers' paychecks without following federal requirements.Because Michigan does not have Right to Work protections making union affiliation completely voluntary, Rusch, who has refrained from formal union membership, is still forced to pay part of forced union dues to keep her job at the university. However, she is not required to pay union dues or fees for union boss political activities, lobbying, and member-only events.

Teamster Union Faces Federal Charge For Illegally Using Forced Dues for Politics

Minneapolis, MN (June 11, 2012) – With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, a New Brighton Ford journeyman technician has filed a federal charge against a local Teamster union for violating his rights.Dylan McHenry of Hammond, Wisconsin filed the charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) regional office in Minneapolis against the Teamsters Local 974 union for illegally confiscating union dues payments from his paychecks for political activism and refusing to follow federal disclosure requirements.Because Minnesota does not have Right to Work protections making union affiliation completely voluntary, McHenry, who resigned from formal union membership in April, is still forced to pay fees to the union to keep his job.

Wisconsin Civil Servants File Federal Appeals Brief Supporting Governor’s Public-Sector Unionism Reforms

Madison, WI (June 6, 2012) – With free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation and the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty, three Wisconsin public employees have asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit to uphold all of Governor Scott Walker's public-sector unionism reform measures, known as "Act 10."Pleasant Prairie teacher Kristi Lacroix, Waukesha high school teacher Nathan Berish, and trust fund specialist at the Wisconsin Department of Employee Trust Funds Ricardo Cruz filed the brief yesterday.The workers, who are forced to accept the "representation" of union officials, want instead the freedom to represent themselves with their employers. The workers are challenging a lower court judge’s ruling to strike down Wisconsin's new union recertification requirements and the ban on the use of taxpayer funded-payroll systems to collect union dues for general employees.