We are here primarily to provide information for individuals to be able to make informed decisions. We cannot substitute for legal advice, but we will do our best to provide you with answers and information as we understand it.
The unions seem to think so. They tell you that you can. But, reality is that several of our members asked the National Right to Work Folks if that was true. With their help, a lawsuit was brought against WFSE for wrongful terminations against state workers fired because they refused to pay dues. In the settlement, all state workers were rehired with back pay, and all firings from WFSE represented bargaining unions have stopped. Will they start again? We can't say. We can tell you that there are several state workers who have never paid union dues, and they still work, and get their paycheck. Several more have requested their automatic payroll deductions to quit.
Does this mean I can quit paying union dues/fees?
Yes, you could all along. We cannot provide legal advice. We provide information, you consider your risks, and you make your own decisions. Many more state employees have told us they are ceasing their authorization of payroll deduction for union dues/fees. Many have never paid any dues.
How can I quit paying union dues/fees?
If you have authorized payroll deduction for union dues or fees, you can send an email to your agency’s payroll office and to the union (greg@wfse.org and/or wfse@wfse.org ), and state that no further payroll deductions for union dues or fees are authorized by you.
Do I have to pay union dues by payroll deduction?
Seems that the WFSE union has its own "constitution" that only allows for full membership dues to be paid through payroll deduction. If you notify WFSE that you want to pay FULL MEMBERSHIP dues by personal check, they will turn you down or offer to accept your money as "agency fee" instead of full membership. If you make a good faith effort to pay full membership dues by personal check and WFSE doesn’t give you full membership, the employer is not under any contract obligation to terminate you, as you have made a good faith effort but were rebuffed by the union.
Who in State Government signed off on this union security deal in the first place?
This is a complicated question, and we are working on a comprehensive answer, with the information available to us. It is as high as the Governor, including the current Governor who was the Attorney General at the time of the signing of this contract.
Why is the union responsible for the "technical error" wrongful terminations?
We can only guess that WFSE is willing to take the blame for a half dozen wrongful terminations and to pay for the costs of reinstatement, in order to have the state allow WFSE to continue to collect millions of dollars in dues/fees from state employees. We are SUSPICIOUS.
This is so confusing! Can someone help me sort through all this information?
To the best of our ability, we are here to provide you with information you need to make educated choices. We are no substitute for legal advice. We are simply volunteers who care about your rights, our rights.
