Judge: Michigan teachers should be able to exit union anytime under right-to-work law

Mlive.com ^ | September 04, 2014 | Dave Eggert

[cripplecreek]

LANSING — Michigan's largest teachers' union should allow members to resign at any time and stop enforcing an annual one-month opt-out window, a state labor judge ruled, relying on the state right-to-work law that took effect last year.

The administrative law judge, Julia Stern, recommended Tuesday that the Republican-controlled Employment Relations Commission order the Michigan Education Association to no longer limit school employees to leaving the union solely in August of each year. She said the law that took effect last year incorporated a federal law interpreted to give public employees the ability to leave their union anytime.

[cripplecreek]

Gotta love it. They claim that fewer than 5000 opted out in August but there were only some 11,000 members to begin with. The opt out window closed 4 days ago and the judge is throwing it open permanently.

Hard to say what the truth is but I know thousands have simply quit paying dues and I have a feeling they're down to only a couple thousand members now.

[TBP]

The government will fix that prontissimo.

[cripplecreek]

The MEA paints a rosy picture but if I'm looking at the numbers right, they're pretty much finished.



Michigan legislative action thread

[Vigilanteman]

Years ago, my brother taught in South Dakota when the union went after any teachers who “opted out.” He did anyway (Mom and Dad’s brood never lacked the stomach for a righteous fight), but he said most of the teachers just quit paying dues. It was just as effective. The union withered and died on the vine.

[GeronL]

The should not need to sign anything, inform the union or anything else.

[cripplecreek]

I’d sure like to know what the actual numbers look like. I know a few years ago when we were discussing a specific RTW law for teachers, the MEA president said they would lose 40% of their members including him.

[GeronL]

including him

I still find that funny for someone opposed to it

[re_nortex]

Exterminate unions! Abolish the minimum wage! Restore American prosperity! Stand up for liberty!

[eyedigress]

Impressive. A judge understands what a “right to work” law means. Any other ruling would have had her ridiculed out of office.

[Oatka]

. . . most of the teachers just quit paying dues. It was just as effective. The union withered and died on the vine.

I think that was what got the teachers' union in Wisconsin all-a-twitter. Their dues were automatically deducted by the state and then Walker said they weren't going to do the unions accounting for them and shut it down. An en masse emigration ensued as the teachers followed the lead of their compatriots in ND.

[hoosierham]

Forced unionism is just wrong and unAmerican.

The Democrats are going to fight losing the money extorted from unionized workers.

[mcshot]

Unfortunately union dues were automatically deducted from paychecks so some notification necessary.