Capitol Building by Andrew Malone is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
Americans for Tax Reform President Grover Norquist sent a letter to Congress on Friday in support of S. 5213, the “Union Members Right to Know Act.”
The legislation introduced by Senator Cassidy (R-La.) would require labor unions to better inform workers of their rights to religiously object to dues payments under the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and their “Beck rights” to object to dues payments used for nonrepresentational purposes according to Communications Workers v. Beck.
The bill would also require unions to obtain written consent from workers before using their union dues for political purposes.
Read the full letter here or below:
September 27, 2024
Dear Member of Congress,
I write in support of S. 5213, the “Union Members Right to Know Act,” recently introduced by Senator Bill Cassidy (R-La.). The bill would help ensure that current and potential labor union members are better informed of their rights under federal law and do not have their dues unfairly used for nonrepresentational activities.
Americans for Tax Reform urges all members of Congress to cosponsor the Union Members Right to Know Act.
In particular, the bill amends the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 to require labor unions to inform their members of their right to religious accommodations under the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as well as the “Beck rights” of employees as decided by the Supreme Court in Communications Workers v. Beck. The legislation would also require labor unions to exclusively use collected dues for the purposes of representing the employees who paid those dues, unless the employee authorizes use of their dues for other purposes in writing.
Pursuant to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, employees have the right to religiously object to the payment of dues or fees to a labor union. This issue has become particularly poignant in recent months as some Jewish employees have rejected the idea of funding unions that they believe took antisemitic stances in the wake of the October 7th attack on Israel. No employee should be forced to fund a labor organization that opposes his or her religious beliefs, and these employees deserve to be informed of their right to object.
Under Communications Workers v. Beck, the Supreme Court held that the unauthorized use of dues collected from nonmembers for nonrepresentational purposes violated their First Amendment rights. Unions are supposed to spend their time and money representing the workers in their bargaining unit, not on supporting partisan political candidates and issues. If workers are forced to pay dues to unions to which they do not even want to belong, they should at least be informed of their rights to object to the use of those dues for political purposes.
The added protections against unauthorized use of dues for nonrepresentational purposes under the Union Members Right to Know Act will strengthen these Beck rights. Under the new legislation, workers would have to authorize use of their funds for political purposes in writing rather than allowing unions to earmark their funds for these purposes themselves. This added layer of protection ensures accountability for unions and better representation for workers.
All members of Congress should cosponsor S. 5213, the Union Members Right to Know Act.
Onward,
Grover Norquist
President, Americans for Tax Reform
