Posts tagged opt-out
Opinion:The Fall of Florida’s ‘Zombie Unions’
December 26, 2024 // The Florida Education Association (FEA), which represents teachers and school staff, has lost about 13% of its members since 2023, according to a review of federal data by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. That’s because members in several school districts voted not to recertify their chapters, allowing them to disband.
It’s fine to steal for a union, but not from a union
November 18, 2024 // It bears noting that in none of the cases litigated by the Freedom Foundation did law enforcement even treat the forgery as a crime. No serious criminal investigation was ever undertaken, nor were the perpetrators ever prosecuted. Evidently the double standard extends from coast to coast and even beyond U.S. shores.
WASHINGTON: State worker tells peers, ‘WFSE isn’t worth it’
November 13, 2024 // His supervisor somehow found out about his disability and began treating him differently. To his shock, he learned his supervisor had divulged his private, HIPAA-protected medical information while he was out for surgery. He immediately turned to WFSE, asking for protection from this unfair treatment. His union representative assured him they would take care of it. But weeks passed, and the gossip and bullying continued.
Hydra-Lock employees vote to decertify their union
November 11, 2024 // “This is the latest in a surge of Michigan workers rejecting union bosses’ forced dues powers since the repeal of Michigan’s popular right-to-work law,” Patrick Semmens, vice president of the National Right to Work Foundation, told Michigan Capitol Confidential in an email. Public opinion surveys show that Michigan voters, including unionized workers, strongly opposed the right-to-work repeal, Semmens added.
Myths vs. Facts: Public Workers’ Janus Rights
November 7, 2024 // ALEC’s model Public Employee Rights and Authorization Act can help states reach full compliance. Its comprehensive reforms reiterate workers rights by ensuring that workers are unambiguously informed of their rights, have ample windows to make membership decisions, and can make labor decisions on an annual basis.
Commentary- Teachers: Your Union Dues are Funding the Election
October 31, 2024 // Teachers in swing states such as Pennsylvania should be particularly aware of where unions are spending their dues. During the 2022-2023 fiscal year, the Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA), representing over 175,000 Pennsylvania teachers, spent $5.02 million on politics. This spending went primarily to progressive causes. PSEA is also an affiliate of the NEA, which means a portion of Pennsylvania teachers dues are also spent on politics by the national union.
What role will unions play in the 2024 presidential election? A visual guide
October 28, 2024 // Nearly a quarter of the workforce belonged to a union 40 years ago. Now that number is just over 10%. Though worker stoppages have kept up, labor union rates have steadily declined for decades. From 1983 to 2022, union membership fell by half, from 20.1% to 10.1%. "Union density reached a high of over 30% in the post-World War II decades in the 1950s and 1960s," said Kent Wong, director of the UCLA Labor Center.
Canvassers respond to anti-Semitic demonstrations at UCLA
October 18, 2024 // While we are always looking to be respectful and informative, our canvassers have also been met with extremely vulgar attacks from none other than AFSMCE 3299 shop stewards. Just yesterday the pair was castigated for simply handing out literature and trying to engage with workers in front of the medical center. Profanities and threats of attacks were met with a polite, yet bold, resistance.
New proposed federal law would bar unions from promoting antisemitism
October 7, 2024 // Title VII of the Civil Rights Act allows employees not to pay dues or fees to a union based on their religious beliefs or practices. But Cassidy said many workers were unaware they have the right to pull their union dues from activities that have nothing to do with union bargaining for salaries and benefits. As part of the Senate committee’s probe into antisemitism, the senator also found that unions make it difficult to opt out of these unrelated costs — including bogging down workers with lawsuits that end up costing more than the actual dues. “Union members pay unions to represent before management. This legislation keeps unions focused on that,” said Cassidy.
Rhode Island School District Settles Suit With Teacher Denied Tenure After Leaving Union
October 3, 2024 // Although Lancellotta received "highly effective" ratings in his most recent evaluations, the district did not renew his contract, a move that effectively terminated his employment. This decision appeared to be driven by his resignation from the union. An appeal to the school board revealed that school officials had based their decision to terminate solely on the recommendation of Lancellotta’s department head, a union committee member. The appeal also uncovered troubling collaboration between the school’s attorneys and the union’s legal team.