Sep 19 2017
Labor & Employment Law Practice Group Podcast
In 1977 in�Abood v. Detroit Board of Education, the Supreme Court ruled that public employees, including school teachers, could legally be required to pay a fee if they refuse to join a public-sector union. According to the Detroit Board of Education, the fee was necessary to off-set the costs the union incurred while bargaining on behalf of union and non-union members alike.
A similar case came to the Supreme Court in 2014, but the Supreme Court did not answer the primary question of�Abood, instead ruling that the public employees in question were not actually public employees. Last year, the Supreme Court was left in deadlock in a similar case on the same issue after Justice Scalia�s passing.
Janus v. AFSCME, brought by an employee of the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services who does not believe he should be legally obliged to join a union, is pending cert in the Supreme Court. William Messenger, Staff Attorney at the National Right to Work Foundation, joined us to discuss the probability of�Janus�being heard at the Court and what that could mean for the future of public-sector employees and unions.
Featuring:
- William L. Messenger,�Staff Attorney,�National Right to Work Legal Defense and Education Foundation, Inc.�