Florida Legislators Devise New Union Busting Schemes

Some leaders in the Florida Legislature have cooked up a new scheme to attack unions of teachers, state and municipal workers, public safety employees and other public servants. The bill--HB1--is similar to a law currently blocked by court-order in Alaska that radically changes the ways union members submit their dues. The changes rely on an overly broad interpretation of catastrophic 2018 Janus ruling by the Supreme Court, a coordinated attack on public unions launched through the courts to ban collection of “agency fees”--fees from potential members in open shops that were used to support collective bargaining which benefited everyone in the unit. HB1 will deliberately make it far more difficult for new members to join their union, and will set back the power of working people in a critical state. 

Legislation like HB1, is being moved by the corporate funded web of anti-union, anti-worker legislators and organizations across the country. The bill’s numerous outrageous provisions include:

• Putting employers in charge of dues authorization for the first time in history 

• Annual renewal of dues authorizations 

• Mandatory language, right down to specific, extra-large font size, on all dues authorizations that promotes anti-union talking points 

As our CWA sisters and brothers, and other union organizers across Florida fight this ridiculous legislation, PHEW will stand in solidarity. “We’re willing to do what it takes to stop another corporate cookie-cutter attack on working people,” said PHEW VP Margaret Cook. Stay tuned for details and action alerts as FL locals develop their plans, and be on guard for similar legislation moving in your own state.