How Scalia’s Death May Grant Public-Sector Unions A Reprieve

[Starry Messenger]

A potentially devastating ruling for organized labor may no longer come to pass.

The unexpected death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia this weekend will scramble much more than just election-year politics. It could recast several decisions pending before the high court, including arguably the most important labor case in years.

With Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association, the court’s conservative majority had the opportunity to make the entire U.S. public sector akin to a right-to-work zone. That would have given hundreds of thousands of public-sector workers the prerogative to opt out of funding the unions that represent them -- delivering a substantial blow to both organized labor and the Democratic Party it pours money into.

But with a 4-4 split in the court along ideological lines, there’s now a good chance that the lower court’s ruling in favor of the union will stand.

t didn’t always seems so. During recent oral arguments, the conservative justices appeared eager to overturn long-standing legal precedent and ban so-called fair share fees. Unions must represent all workers in a bargaining unit -- even those who don’t want representation -- so where state law allows it, workers can be required to pay fair share fees to help cover the cost of collective bargaining. For unions, such an arrangement assures that no worker gets representation for free.

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This is a big fucking deal.

Edit, I was so happy, I forgot the link: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/scalia-public-sector-unions_us_56bfdb1ce4b0b40245c6f855

[randys1]

1. Huge deal. SC with Scalia, the 5, had a whole lot of pain in store for average

Americans, this being just one example.

His death while sad for his family is fantastic news for all human beings.

He should NEVER have been on the SC.

[Starry Messenger]

2. I haven't slept well for two years, since we heard about Friedrichs in my union.

It was like staring Armageddon in the face. With that killing us, in addition to the USSC rolling back the Voting Rights Act, the potential damage to the future of progress via the electoral process would have been immeasurable. I am almost nauseated with relief.

We still have tons of work to do, but at least we aren't totally kneecapped.

[randys1]

3. I will never understand why so many Americans are so easily brainwashed into hating unions

[Starry Messenger]

4. I don't get it either, my friend.

Billions of right-wing dollars go into the brainwashing though. It's been effective.

[nichomachus]

5. It's actually quite easy to understand

It all goes back to the Taft-Hartley bill. Taft-Hartley (1947) allowed unions, but required that they purge all "leftist" members. This was at the beginning of the Red Scare in the US. Unfortunately, the leaders and the driving force of the unions were considered "leftist." They went away and this tore the heart and thought leaders out of the labor movement. The resulting power vacuum was filled in many cases with opportunists and, in some cases, outright gangsters. This made it easy for the corporatists to portray unions as corrupt. That idea still lingers. From there, it was easy to turn people against the unions. It's been a 70-year effort.