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WSLC: Supreme Court should reject 1%ers’ Friedrichs case

15-Jeff-Johnson(Jan. 11, 2016) — Following is a statement from Jeff Johnson, President of the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO, regarding the Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association case that will be heard today by the U.S. Supreme Court:

“America’s economy has swung out of balance. It’s getting harder for working people to get by, let alone get ahead. That’s because our economic rules unfairly favor corporate CEOs and the rich who’ve rigged the system in their favor. Now this Supreme Court case, pushed by right-wing billionaires and their shadowy network of think tanks – including the Freedom Foundation here in Washington state – threatens to make a bad situation much worse.

“At stake is the ability of working people like teachers, nurses, firefighters, and other public service workers to speak up together for better wages and benefits that can sustain their families. This case is not about “freedom.” Under existing laws, no one is ever forced to join a union and no one is ever forced to pay any fees that go to politics or political candidates. The plaintiffs have already opted out of union membership. But now, wealthy special interests are bankrolling a lawsuit against their union to force unions to provide contract and grievance services for free, without paying their “fair share” fee for those services. It is just the latest tactic by a handful of right-wing billionaires to attack working people, destroy unions, and change the rules to benefit themselves.

“The U.S. Supreme Court should never have agreed to hear this manufactured attack on everyday Americans, especially today when the economy is so out of balance.  It should quickly reject this attempt by wealthy special interests to make it even harder for working people to come together, speak up for one another, and get ahead.”

 

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