Charge challenges a 30-day “escape window” that opens only once every three to five years.
Sacramento, CA — The Freedom Foundation has filed an unfair labor practice charge against the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Local 2010, on behalf of eight California university employees whose union kept taking dues from their paychecks after they resigned their membership in writing.
The charge, filed on October 9 with the California Public Employment Relations Board (PERB), alleges Local 2010 unlawfully interfered with and coerced workers in violation of their right to refuse union participation under the Higher Education Employer-Employee Relations Act (HEERA).
The Freedom Foundation’s case targets a provision in Local 2010’s membership agreements that allows workers to resign and stop dues deductions only during a single 30-day period before their collective bargaining agreement expires. Because those contracts typically run three to five years, and can be extended, a worker who misses that narrow window may be locked into paying the union for years.
“How can anyone justify forcing a public employee to stay in a union for five years with only one month to leave?” said Aaron Withe, CEO of the Freedom Foundation. “You can cancel a gym membership any month of the year. Local 2010 says these workers get one month every five years, and it’s counting on them not knowing when that month comes around.”
The Freedom Foundation represents Alex Bernerth, Annette Dwyer, Mario Jimenez, Valarie Lopez, Jesus Munoz, Michelle Ray, Lisa Robinson, and Xianfeng (Devin) Sue. Each submitted a written opt-out letter resigning membership and revoking dues authorization during window periods that fell between March and July 2026. Union dues continued to come out of their wages, beginning with paychecks issued around April 15, and in some cases the deductions are still ongoing.
“These workers did everything the union’s own rules required, and Local 2010 kept taking their money anyway,” said Shella Alcabes, Deputy Chief Litigation Counsel at the Freedom Foundation. “Ignoring written resignations and continuing deductions for months is exactly the kind of interference and coercion HEERA prohibits.”
The Freedom Foundation is asking PERB to end the eight workers’ union membership and dues payments, order Local 2010 to refund every dollar taken since their resignations with interest, and impose civil penalties. The charge also seeks relief for every worker Local 2010 represents: a ban on membership and dues commitments longer than one year, a guaranteed annual opportunity for all members to leave, and an order requiring the union to notify all represented employees that it committed an unfair labor practice.
The Freedom Foundation has helped more than 300,000 public employees exercise their constitutional right to leave their unions.
