NLRB to Consider Weakening State Right-to-Work Protections

Employment Law

Even as more states and localities consider adopting right-to-work laws, the National Labor Relations Board this week invited amicus briefs on an issue that could substantially weaken the effect of those laws.  Currently, in a right-to-work state, an employee represented by a union has the right to abstain from paying union dues or any fees associated with the union representation.  The Board is considering whether to allow a union to charge such employees a user fee whenever the union processes a grievance for them.  The Board also asked for guidance on how those fees could be calculated.  The decision by the Board to consider the case drew a strong response from National Right-to-Work Legal Defense Foundation attorney Glenn Taubman, who said: "For 70 years the Board and federal courts have held that nonmembers in Right-to-Work states cannot be forced to pay fees for grievance representation, in large part because the union 'owns' all grievances under its contract and the employee cannot reach any accommodation with his employer that deviates from the union's control of that contract.  Now, the Obama NLRB is moving to gut all state right-to-work laws by allowing unions to demand such payments from workers forced into the union 'collective.'"