As the U.S. Supreme Court nears a decision in Janus v. AFSCME — in which it is generally expected to strike down laws requiring public employees to financially support a union — media coverage surrounding the case has picked up.
The Freedom Foundation has been prominently featured in multiple news publications recently because of its cutting-edge work to help public employees on the West Coast and beyond learn about how they can avoid financially supporting unions they disagree with.
On June 1, the Wall Street Journal’s Kris Maher reported on various ways unions are seeking to preemptively blunt the impact of the Janus decision.
His article explains that unions are asking “members to sign cards that commit them to paying dues in the future,” regardless of the Supreme Court’s ruling in Janus.
However, Maher also reports:
Several groups are pushing back against recommitment-card campaigns, urging workers not to sign.
The Freedom Foundation in Olympia, Wash., recently sent a mailer to corrections officers represented by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. Below a neon Hotel California sign, a play on the Eagles lyrics warns: ‘You can sign up anytime you like but you can never leave!’
Similarly, Lukas Mikelionis of Fox News reported on June 5 that the California Legislature was considering various pieces of legislation to protect government unions from losing members in Janus’ wake.
The silver lining in the article, however, was that:
…activists are also stepping up their attempts to help workers quit their unions.
The Freedom Foundation, which encourages West Coast government employees to leave the unions, said it recently sent out messages to 50,000 California teachers with instructions how to leave the California Teachers Association.
The group also criticized the bills supported by the union.
After years of outreach, litigation and hard-fought victories against government unions, the Freedom Foundation is uniquely well-positioned to ensure a ruling for workers in Janus is made a practical reality for public employees.
