Ka-Boom! Agency Fees For Public Unions Tossed

[whell]

In a 5-4 vote today, the justices held that states and public-sector unions may no longer require workers to pay agency fees. "Neither an agency fee nor any other payment to the union may be deducted from a nonmember's wages, nor may any other attempt be made to collect such a payment, unless the employee affirmatively consents to pay," Justice Samuel Alito Jr. wrote for the majority.

In dissent, Justice Elena Kagan said the decision will have large-scale consequences. "Public employee unions will lose a secure source of financial support. State and local governments that thought fair-share provisions furthered their interests will need to find new ways of managing their workforces," she wrote.

The majority apparently focused on the 1st Amendment, stating that agency fees were used without the non-members consent for political activities and such forced contributions violated the non-union members 1st Amendment rights.

"It is hard to estimate how many billions of dollars have been taken from nonmembers and transferred to public-sector unions in violation of the First Amendment. Those unconstitutional exactions cannot be allowed to continue indefinitely," Alito wrote.

Ka Boom!