Supreme Court's Janus Case Ruling Deals a Severe Blow to Labor Unions
The Supreme Court ruled in the Janus case on Wednesday, June 27, and it has just hit public labor unions hard where it hurts — their wallets. In a 5–4 decision, the justices have decided that government workers can no longer be required to contribute to labor unions if they decide not to join them.
According to the majority conservative opinion, forcing workers to pay for union activity is a violation of the First Amendment. "We conclude that this arrangement violates the free speech rights of nonmembers by compelling them to subsidize private speech on matters of substantial public concern," Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. wrote for the majority vote, as quoted by the New York Times.
This decision comes as a severe blow to public sector unions across the country, who now stand to lose tens of millions of dollars in terms of funding. It was a fact recognized by Justice Alito in his statement, admitting that unions will be going through "unpleasant transition costs in the short term" as the result of this new development.
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The ruling also overturned a 41-year-old decision, one that had allowed states to require their employees to pay union fees, whether they choose to join or not as part of a "fair share fees" arrangement for the collective bargaining and other work done by unions in behalf of all employees.
Labor union groups are now considering the possibility not only of the lost revenue from non-members not paying union fees, but also the fact that their existing members can decide to stop paying fees, considering that they will still get union representation regardless, as Time Magazine pointed out.
It will be a clear incentive for members to leave unions if it meant getting representation especially for free, according to a recent study done by Frank Manzo Illinois Public Policy Institute and Robert Bruno of the University of Illinois.
According to their study, public sector unions stand to lose more than 700,000 members over time as a result of this new Supreme Court decision.
