Freedom Foundation Secures Two Victories After Successful Demand Letters

Freedom Foundation Secures Two Victories After Successful Demand Letters

Freedom Foundation Secures Two Victories After Successful Demand Letters

It is not every day a union listens to the desperate pleas of its members requesting the end to union membership and dues deductions. Members’ odds of escaping union bondage substantially increase dramatically, though, when the Freedom Foundation intervenes.

Consider, for example, Ronald Roque and Howard Alger, two environmental specialists for the city of Los Angeles and former members of SEIU 721.

Both individuals tried to leave the union for months. Their reasons for leaving echo those of countless other public employees we have helped. SEIU wasn’t adequately representing their interests so they left.

Roque also listed several reasons for leaving, such as SEIU not returning phone calls or emails, including a no-strike clause in its most recent collective bargaining agreement and “agreeing to cost-of-living adjustments that are lower than the price of goods and services to a typical consumer.”

It’s bad enough when a union can’t perform the basic tasks it’s entrusted with. But when it takes your money anyway and does whatever it wants with it, then can’t even bother to respond when you complain about it, who wouldn’t want out?

Many members do want out, but unions have a knack for trapping employees into union membership against their will and dismissing their demands. SEIU is no exception.

Fortunately, the Freedom Foundation was there to help Roque and Alger. Attorneys for the organization forcefully demanded SEIU stop the deductions and reimburse our clients. SEIU’s ears perked up to the attorneys’ demand letters and they quickly complied.

Our clients received compensation and were “freed of institutionalized theft of union dues….” as Roque referred to it.

Our clients’ experience illustrates the need for organizations like the Freedom Foundation to hold government unions accountable. Thankfully, the Freedom Foundation is pretty darn good at their job and a trusted ally of public-sector workers.

Just take Roque’s word for it. “I am happy with the Freedom Foundation. They are good people!”

Litigation Counsel
mgondeiro@freedomfoundation.com
Mariah earned her JD from Pepperdine University School of Law. While at Pepperdine, Mariah competed on the track and field and cross-country teams. Her work experience includes time at a well-respected plaintiff’s law firm, the Los Angeles County District Attorney Office and the Los Angeles Dependency Lawyers. Mariah has a long-standing, strong interest in curbing government overreach that treads on the rights of individuals, including interning for U.S. Rep. Steve Daines during her undergraduate studies. When not working, Mariah spends her time enjoying the great outdoors with her husband, training for triathlons, and spending time on her family ranch.