Unions Allege DeSantis Violated Their State Constitutional Rights

https://onlabor.org/unions-allege-desantis-violated-their-state-constitutional-rights/

November 2, 2023

By Michelle Berger

Michelle Berger is a student at Harvard Law School.

DeSantis’ Assault on Public Sector Unions

In May, Governor Ron DeSantis signed into law SB 256, a measure that endangers the future of public sector unions in Florida. The law prohibits Florida’s public sector unions from collecting dues through automatic paycheck deductions. It also requires a recertification election if less than 60 percent of workers eligible for a union’s representation pay dues to the union. Translation: the law makes it harder for public sector unions to collect dues, while simultaneously conditioning those unions’ security on their ability to collect dues from a supermajority of employees. The legislation exempts from this new scheme police officer unions, correctional officer unions, and firefighter unions. Non-exempt public sector unions include, among others, the Florida teacher’s union. With 150,000 members, the Florida Education Association is the largest union not only in Florida, but in the entire American Southeast.

Florida’s public sector unions challenged SB 256 in both state and federal court. The federal case is ongoing. This post focuses on the state court litigation, where the unions are raising compelling arguments under Florida’s state constitution.

The Litigation Strategy

In state court, the unions raised two state constitutional arguments. First, they argued that SB 256’s exception for certain unions violates the state constitution’s equal protection guarantee. Second, they argued that SB 256 violates employees’ state constitutional right to bargain collectively.

The unions’ fight in state court is far from over, but the litigation faced a setback in early October when the court dismissed the unions’ original suit for lack of standing. SB 256 became law in May, and that is when the unions filed their lawsuit. But SB 256 gave the unions until October 1st to submit documentation that at least 60 percent of represented workers are paying dues. By filing before the October 1st deadline, during the period when the unions were actively working to meet the 60 percent threshold, the court reasoned that the unions’ alleged harm was too speculative. Unless the unions appeal, this development signals the end of the unions’ equal protection claim­­ because the court dismissed that claim with prejudice, finding that the unions had failed to state a cause of action. However, the court dismissed without prejudice the unions’ claim arising out of employees’ constitutional right to collectively bargain. Recognizing that the October 1st deadline has now passed, and thus implying that the unions ought to now be able to demonstrate standing, the court granted the unions 60 days to amend their complaint.

FULL story at link above.