Public Sector Unions Prepare for Impact of Supreme Court Decision on Costs

Mark Janus,

who is represented by lawyers at the Liberty Justice Center and the National Foundation for Legal Defense of the Right to Work, said that bargaining with public bodies is inherently political and that a mandatory contribution of $ 45 per month to the union violated his rights to the first amendment.

Although Wednesday's decision will have no direct impact on private sector unions, it could accelerate a country-wide trend towards non-union workplaces. About one-third of public sector employees are unionized, but about 6.5% of private sector workers belong to a union.

Lily Eskelsen García, president of the National Education Association, the country's largest union with nearly 3 million members, described the move as "a blatant slap for educators, nurses, firefighters, police and all the officials ".

In anticipation of the decision, the union had reduced its budget by $ 50 million and feared losing the agency fees of 90,000 members. The other primary teachers union, the American Federation of Teachers, said in an internal memo earlier this year that it could lose 20% or more of its total funding.

Union officials said they expected the state agencies to stop collecting union dues immediately, but the speed with which the process would unfold between states and the question of whether state laws could complicate the process were unclear.

Governor of Illinois Bruce Rauner

said in an interview that he was expecting the state to stop collecting agency fees soon. He said that state officials were studying how to implement the court's ruling, but that it is possible that all government employees in the state could finally have the opportunity to choose whether they want to be in a union or not.

"It's a great day for the workers and a great day for taxpayers," said the Republican governor, who launched the case in the Supreme Court in 2015, after suing the American Federation of Employees States, counties and municipalities. are either in the union and pay all the dues or you are not and you do not pay. "

Conservative groups launched campaigns on Wednesday that took months to inform union members through direct mail, advertising and websites, including a site called "MyPayMySay", which they can now refuse. to pay contributions.

The Mackinac Conservative Center for Public Policy in Michigan announced that it would spend $ 10 million for the rest of the year for efforts that include a national call center in Washington, DC, which went into service Wednesday.

Lindsay Killen, vice president of the group's communications strategy, said the group was expecting to receive 40,000 to 60,000 calls from officials in the coming months, according to a campaign by the Mackinac Center at Michigan. During a three-year campaign, more than 100,000 public servants stopped paying their dues, including 25,000 to the Michigan Education Association, she said.

"Our efforts will be hyper-focused on the 11 states with the largest number of public servants," she said. "Workers will have to understand the impact of this decision."

The Freedom Foundation will send a direct mail to more than 150,000 public sector union members in the state of Washington on Wednesday, telling them how they can stop paying union dues. The group based in Olympia, Washington, has also sent several dozens of canvbaders to talk to workers in state and county offices and hand them flyers.

"We have people all over the state," said Maxford Nelsen, director of labor policy. He added that the group hopes to eventually reach all employees in Oregon and California.

The unions remained strong supporters of Democratic politicians, even though many of their white and hard-working members gravitated in the last election to the president's populist message.

Donald Trump.

In the 2016 election, unions spent $ 217 million to elect Democrats, a 59% increase over 2012, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

The Illinois Economic Policy Institute on the left estimated in a May report that a decision in Janus' favor could result in the loss of 726,000 union members over several years.

Against all odds, most public sector unions launched campaigns last fall to solicit members in case of adverse decision, hold rallies, knock on the door and, in many cases, ask members to sign re-engagement cards.

Although the majority of union members live in liberal states – 45 percent reside in New York and California – several states, including Ohio and Pennsylvania, have also authorized the use of fees. ;agency. States.

Despite the imminent threat of the Supreme Court, teacher unions in particular have seen an increase in their activity this year as educators from six states have participated in protests against low pay and poor conditions. clbad. Trade union leaders said Wednesday that the walkouts – which originated organically rather than through the union – were a sign that employees still value the power of collective bargaining. The union leaders also hope that following the success of these movements earlier this year, more employees will see the value of the remaining members.

"What we have seen is that when we are together, the public stands with us," said Ms. Eskelsen García.

The court's decision will likely reduce the unions' ability to convince their members to vote as the unions want. Unions typically use their dues-funded caisses to pay for polling fees, political protest fees, and pay political teams to contact members and educate them on election issues to ensure they are in good standing. vote for union approved candidates. .

The agency fee payers will probably be allowed to stop paying immediately, although the question of whether full members can stop payment is a bit more blurred. Public sector workers who have agreed to become full members may be required to continue paying dues until the end of their union contracts, and may be affected by a mosaic of state laws.

In its ruling, the court stated that public sector workers must actively consent to be members of a union rather than refuse to pay dues. This could prompt conservative groups to claim that unions must re-sign all existing members, said Craig Becker, AFL-CIO General Counsel.

"Arguments like this could be made, but those who joined have already done so voluntarily," he said. "There should not be any requirements for re-signing members."

The decision should also resolve a number of similar lawsuits, as it affects other states.

In Pennsylvania, four public school teachers sued the State Affiliate of the National Education Association in a federal court in Harrisburg in early 2017. Teachers also argued that "there is no such thing as public education. they should not be required to pay fees to the union.

"It's a total change for our clients and public workers across the country," said David Osborne, a lawyer representing teachers.

Write to Michelle Hackman at [email protected] and Kris Maher at [email protected]