Bill to Make Workers Aware of Their Rights Heads for Floor Vote, Klunk says

HARRISBURG – In order to ensure public sector employees know their rights, the House Labor and Industry Committee today approved legislation, House Bill 2571, by Rep. Kate Klunk (R-York) to require government employers to alert impacted workers of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Janus vs. AFSCME decision.

“For decades, roughly 28,000 Pennsylvania workers were forced to contribute portions of their hard-earned pay checks, called “fair share fees,” to unions that financially support causes in which they do not believe,” Klunk said. “Under the court’s decision, these workers will not have to pay these fees any longer.”

House Bill 2571 would further protect the rights of individuals in a collective bargaining unit who are not members of the representative union. Specifically, the legislation proposes the following four changes to Act 195:

• Directs public sector employers to inform nonunion members of the Janus decision and that these once required “fair share fees” to the union are now purely voluntary. These workers will also be informed that their employment status will not be affected.
• Requires that a public employer notify job applicants that being a member of the representative union is not a condition of employment, and that as a nonmember they have no obligation to make any payments to the representative union.
• Prohibits public employers from making any payroll deductions from wages of nonmembers to a representative union and requires all voluntary payments to a representative union be made directly by the nonmember employee to the union.
• Repeals the two Pennsylvania laws that authorized the payment of “fair share fees” by nonmembers (Act 84 of 1988 and Act 15 of 1993).

“These valuable public sector workers shouldn’t be left in the dark about this important change by the court,” Klunk said. “My legislation does not change unions’ right to organize, bargain or collect dues from willing members. My bill and the Janus decision also have no impact on private-sector employers or unions.”

The bill now goes to the full House for consideration.

Representative Kate A. Klunk
169th Legislative District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Greg Gross
717.260.6374
ggross@pahousegop.com
RepKlunk.com / Facebook.com/RepKlunk