UnionTrack ENGAGE NEWS

The Supreme Court just spared public sector unions, but that doesn't mean we won

Yes. The Supreme Court spared public sector unions.

No. That doesn't mean we won.

The labor movement is pretty happy this morning, at least judging by social media, and they have good reason to be. The Supreme Court announced it had deadlocked, 4-4 in the Friedrichs case that could have decimated unions by prohibiting the collection of fair share fees. Without a court majority, the decision of the lower court stands, and non-members will still have to contribute toward the cost of contract negotiation and grievance representation. To put it mildly, we dodged a bullet. We should be happy with the result. We can even celebrate a little bit.

But here's the thing. The anti-union forces that brought and funded this case aren't sitting in a corner, licking their wounds. This result has been expected since Justice Scalia passed away on February 13th.

Make no mistake. We won this battle, but the war is far from over. If I had to guess, I'd assume conference rooms in Wichita are buzzing right now. A strategy is taking shape. Plans are being made.

The Guardian explained it this way in February:

"The best way to say it, if it's 4-4, it's as if the court had never even heard the case," said Russell Wheeler, a federal courts expert at the Brookings Institution. "The decision below stands, but it has no precedential value.

In other words, this isn't settled law. There will be another case. And another after that. If you've wondered why most Republicans have refused to do their job and held fast to the ludicrous idea that President Obama shouldn't be allowed to appoint another Justice, it's partly because they know they've lost their anti-union majority on the Court.

We know the relentless assault on unions and working people will continue. That's why we're constantly working to unify the labor movement. We have already begun deploying new technology that will help unions survive Right to Work and Paycheck Protection by simplifying dues collection. We're proud to be a part of the labor movement, and we take pride in the work we do to keep our unions strong.

Today, we won. Tomorrow, the work continues.

In Solidarity,

Ken

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