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Should teachers’ union dues pay for politics?

The court has not yet agreed to hear the case, but will hear limited oral arguments from the MEA and the Michigan Secretary of State.    

 

The original case was brought by the MEA, which has collective bargaining agreements with school districts that require the districts to administer a payroll deduction plan for contributions to the MEA political action committee, Newsline reported.

 

An Ingham County judge said such contract provisions did not violate state law, according to Newsline, as long as the political action committee or union pays for school districts' added expenses in advance.

 

But the state Court of Appeals later ruled that government resources cannot be used to make political contributions even if the school district is paid in advance, the report said.

 

The Mackinac Center for Public Policy, which publishes Michigan Education Digest, filed an amicus curiae brief in the case, arguing that such paycheck withdrawals are illegal under the Michigan Campaign Finance Act and that government has no appropriate role in advancing partisan political ends.

 

In previous columns, teachers have wondered how they can have their dues diverted from political activities.

 

“There are two routes a teacher (or any unionized employee), can take,” stated Paul Kersey of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy.

 
”The first is to become an agency fee payer. Ordinarily the agency fee payer is expected to pay the regular dues amount (the benefit is that you aren't required to go on strike if the union calls one)

”The agency fee payer can also make what is known as a "Beck Objection" and reduce his or her dues to the share represented by collective bargaining, grievances, and contract administration, effectively opting out of union social and political activism -- at least in theory.

”In practice, we have reason to believe that unions systematically underestimate their spending on all the extras, but Beck Objections do offer unionized workers some control over their money.

:The second option is to register a religious objection. Under federal workplace rules, employers and unions must make reasonable accomodation for workers who have religiously-grounded objections to union membership.

”In this case, the typical practice is to have the full does amount paid to a neutral charity, preferably one that both the worker and the union find acceptable.”

 

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