This Labor Day, let’s celebrate the workers who took on their unions
Matt Lamb
Labor’s Day goal to celebrate “the many contributions workers have made to America’s strength, prosperity, and well-being” is incomplete without a celebration of those who took on union bullying.
Unions can be useful in advocating for safe working conditions, fighting for better benefits, and ensuring employee concerns are heard by management. But some union members had to take on their own unions to fight for their rights. These people are worth honoring this Labor Day.
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Pro-life flight attendant Charlene Carter took on not just Southwest Airlines but also the Transport Workers Union of America when both tried to silence her for sharing her views. Carter had to pay fees to the union despite her opposition to its political views.
This issue became even greater when she used her social media to criticize the union’s support for the Women’s March in 2017, an event supported by the abortion industry. Carter’s union failed to support her when Southwest called her in to admonish her for sharing her personal beliefs. The union president claimed Carter “harassed” him, and Southwest soon after fired the flight attendant, who ultimately prevailed in her lawsuit.
Rebecca Hill knows something about union problems. The sole provider for her daughter with disabilities, she challenged the powerful Service Employees International Union, which wanted to force her to pay it money to represent her. But her real employer is her daughter, whom she helps with daily living. Though she and her fellow personal assistants could not get the Supreme Court to take up their case, she deserves to be honored for fighting for her rights and for people with disabilities not to have a union come between them and their care.
Even though Hill lost, her fellow Land of Lincoln resident Mark Janus did win his battle against forced unionization. Janus defeated the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, which wanted to force him to pay for its representation, even though he did not share the union’s view.
“The First Amendment is violated when money is taken from nonconsenting employees for a public-sector union; employees must choose to support the union before anything is taken from them,” Justice Samuel Alito wrote in his June 2018 decision. “Accordingly, neither an agency fee nor any other form of payment to a public-sector union may be deducted from an employee, nor may any other attempt be made to collect such a payment, unless the employee affirmatively consents to pay.”
He took up the cause of California teacher Rebecca Friedrichs, who opposed her hard-earned money going to a union that did not represent her views. She likely would have won her case in 2016 had Justice Antonin Scalia not died in February 2016, leaving a split on the court.
These brave workers fought for their free speech rights and to ensure others are not forced to subsidize union activities. Unions are supposed to represent the views of their members and ensure safe working conditions and fair pay. They are not supposed to act as a front for the Democratic Party’s agenda.
Unions are a net positive when they represent all workers and do not take political positions unrelated to their labor advocacy. They do not need to take positions on abortion, Israel, or defunding the police. Instead, unions should represent their workers only on issues that directly relate to the workplace.
It’s often said that “unions built the middle class” and the country. But really, workers in and out of those unions built the country and created economic prosperity. Those workers, including those who challenge their unions, deserve celebration this Labor Day.
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Matt Lamb is a contributor to the Washington Examiner’s Beltway Confidential blog. He is an associate editor for the College Fix and has previously worked for Students for Life of America and Turning Point USA.