Mass. pols eye creating cushion for public unions
Fear court ruling on fees will weaken role of labor
Massachusetts lawmakers and unions are already planning on legislation to try to “soften the blow” of a Supreme Court decision yesterday that found government workers cannot be forced to contribute to unions, a decision experts say is likely to have a significant impact on unions.
“We as the House will be taking some action I guess to soften the blow, shall we say, relative to our unions here in Massachusetts,” said House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo, saying he hopes to bring legislation to the floor by the end of July. “There could be quite a bit of loss in terms of revenue for our unions, so we just want to make sure unions still have a place here in Massachusetts, that they play a role in the Massachusetts economy.”
Yesterday, the Supreme Court overturned a decadesold decision that allowed states to require workers pay union fees, even if they don’t join the union. The Supreme Court wrote requiring nonunion workers to pay fees is a violation of the First Amendment.
“It’s a real challenge now for public-sector unions, they’re going to have to double down on their efforts to demonstrate their value to the people they represent,” said Thomas Kochan, codirector of the MIT Sloan Institute for Work and Employment Research. “It’s going to have a really big effect, devastating effect on public unions.”
Kochan said declining union membership could weaken the organizations’ power during collective bargaining, and said unions will now have to constantly convince membership they should stay in the union.
“Clearly unions always need to pay attention to demonstrating their value to members, but if that becomes an obsession that’s going to take time away from engaging in cooperative and collaborative way with employers, to preparing for collective bargaining,” Kochan said.
Still, local unions said yesterday they are confident their members see the value in staying in the union.
“Union members, young and old, are committed to stick together and continue advocating for the public good,” said Steven Tolman, president of the Massachusetts AFL-CIO. “No court case or the rich and powerful people behind it can stop working people from sticking together.”
DeLeo did not say what is likely to be introduced, but said the House is working with local unions to try to reach a consensus on a measure. Several other states have already passed laws meant to lessen the impact of the decision, including some that make it easier for unions to sign up new members or make it harder for members to stop paying fees.