Ruling is a setback for public-sector unions.
In a setback for public-sector unions, a consent order could upend Pennsylvania’s fair share fee laws, which require non-union workers to pay a fee similar to union dues.
The consent order, issued on May 23 by the Court of Common Pleas of Lancaster County, declared the state’s fair share fee law unconstitutional under the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2018 decision in Janus v. American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees.
The plaintiffs, public schoolteachers Jane Ladley and Christopher Meier, filed a lawsuit against the Pennsylvania State Education Association eight years ago because they opposed paying a fair share fee to the union as a requirement for public employment.
The PSEA is the state’s largest teachers union.
“This judgment is a long-overdue victory for teachers and other public employees,” Ladley said in a press release. “I believe union officials have been fighting to keep so-called ‘fair share’ fee provisions in contracts to confuse employees who don’t know their rights. Now, there’s a court order that should stop union officials in their tracks if they try to collect those fees.”
Ladley, now retired, and Meier objected to the fee on religious grounds; state law allowed religious objectors to send their fees to a charity instead. However, PSEA officials rejected their selected charities, saying the charity must be one that was approved by the union.
What a ripoff! All of those non-union employees who forcibly paid the union to work should get every penny back, plus interest, going back to the day this thievery began, even if it’s decades and decades ago.
I agree!
Most teachers have no idea what the Janus case is, or the fact they can ‘opt out’ if they choose to do so. The WCEA in Wicomico has leadership that still thinks they can automatically charge teachers this ‘fee’ and state that it covers the cost of negotiations for the bargining unit. The sad truth is that all the ‘association’ really does is help fund a very large PAC of looney iberals. Further, they frequently share that the dues cover legal representation of up to 1MM. While true, what they don’t tell you is that you can get identical (or better) coverage for far less from several other vendors (LegalShield is an example – $25.00/month).
For any of those teachers who would like to dispute me, I worked directly with Chet Elder (Uniserve Rep) for years, as well as J.C. Parker.