Posts tagged Meyers-Milias-Brown Act
Calif. In-Home Workers Accuse Unions of Coerced Dues, Shakedowns
July 15, 2026 // May, 39, received training to become a home worker through Medicare’s In-Home Support Services, or IHSS, to care for her then-infant. In the summer of 2023, as a mandatory part of her training, she attended an IHSS orientation. May was expecting to learn about the program’s rules, payroll procedures, and her legal responsibilities for compliance. Instead, she says that 75% of the orientation was devoted to pressuring her to join the local chapter of the Service Employees International Union. At the end of the presentation, May said a representative from the Service Employees International Union local 2015 locked the doors of the orientation room and told attendees that “no one is leaving until everyone signs” a union membership card.
Special Feature: How Public Employee Unions Built California’s Most Powerful Political Machine
July 13, 2026 // In California, public employee unions are often among the most influential organizations helping determine who becomes governor, mayor, county supervisor or school board trustee. They endorse candidates. They contribute millions of dollars to campaigns and independent expenditures. They provide campaign volunteers, voter outreach, mail programs, and political infrastructure that many candidates could not easily replace. By the time contract negotiations begin, the relationship between labor and management has often existed for months or years. That does not mean elected officials simply surrender to union demands. Many negotiate in good faith and work hard to protect taxpayers while fairly compensating public employees. But in government, the officials responsible for approving compensation packages are frequently supported by the same organizations representing the employees who will benefit from those agreements.
Opinion: One mother’s fight against forced union dues
April 29, 2025 // Every pay period, a portion of my hard-earned wages disappears into the Teamsters’ “Health and Welfare Trust Retiree Plan.” It is likely this deduction isn’t just about healthcare for retirees. A portion of the funds may be channeled into the union’s shareholder activism — buying shares in companies and then pressuring corporate boards to adopt political positions I never agreed to support. The lawsuit challenges California’s Meyers-Milias-Brown Act, which essentially traps public employees like me in a financial relationship with unions we’ve explicitly rejected.
Freedom Foundation Takes the Teamsters to Court
April 16, 2025 // Although Ms. Tarbah is not a member of the Teamsters, a portion of her wages is automatically deducted every pay period and directed into the union’s “Health and Welfare Trust Retiree Plan.” While the plan is presented as a retiree health benefit, the lawsuit alleges that the funds are routinely used for union-driven initiatives that include political and ideological activity. “Karima Tarbah has a constitutional right to decide where her money goes and what causes she supports,” said Timothy Snowball, Litigation Counsel for the Freedom Foundation. “This case is about the fundamental right of every public employee to make choices that align with their own political conscience. California’s laws must align with the Constitution—not empower unions and governments to coerce funding.”