Ex-Union Teachers Argue Dues Collection Rules Violate 1st Amendment Rights

When Chicago teachers went on strike in 2019, Joanne Troesch, a technology coordinator in the city’s schools, and Ifeoma Nkemdi, a second grade teacher, decided they no longer wanted to be part of the union.

But despite their resignations, the Chicago Public Schools continued to withdraw dues from their paychecks on the union’s behalf. The union argues the deduction was legal because the educators signed a contract in 2017 agreeing to the dues.

Troesch and Nkemdi sued, and now are asking the U.S. Supreme Court to take their case. Troesch v. Chicago Teachers Union asks whether signing a membership contract sufficiently authorizes unions to continue collecting the money. The plaintiffs argue that states are denying employees’ rights with so-called “escape periods” — windows of time, ranging from 10 to 30 days, in which employees can opt out.

If employees miss that window — which National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation attorney William Messenger described as a “mandatory subscription service” — unions continue to collect the dues.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/ex-union-teachers-argue-dues-160100204.html