Workers who belong to the plumbers and pipe fitters union have won in court to stop the left-wing union from automatically taking money out of their paychecks for union fees.
Nicolo Giangrasso, who is a plumber, took the United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipe Fitting Industry to court saying that the U.S. Supreme Court had ruled that unions cannot take out fees.
The case in the SCOTUS was Janus v. AFSCME, where the high court ruled that the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union (AFSCME) could not take out dues from member paychecks.
Representing the plumber against UA Local 9, the Liberty Justice Center maintained that the plumber union changing the name of its withholdings from “dues” to “assessments” did not legally get them around the law saying they could not withhold dues.
Per Bob Unruh:
“In its landmark 2018 decision Janus v. AFSCME, the U.S. Supreme Court found that public employees have a First Amendment right to decide whether to join or financially support a union. The court also held that unless workers give their ‘affirmative consent’ to waive that right, a union cannot legally withhold any union dues or other fees from their paychecks,” the legal team explained.
At that time, Giangrasso, a New Jersey plumber employed by the Hamilton Township School District, resigned his union membership and requested the union stop deducting dues from his paychecks.
However, the legal team noted, the union simply refused, making the claim the high court impacted only “dues” and not its “assessments.”
Plumber Giangrasso had asked the union to stop taking the “assessment” fees out of his check, but they refused. His lawsuit made them settle out of court.
Mark this up as one more win against rapacious unionism.
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