Can my union force me to walk a picket protest and/or work for a political campaign?
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Can my union force me to walk a picket protest and/or work for a political campaign?
Per recent union decree: “Every active member of the union must fulfill his or her “Member Participation” requirement by volunteering up to 2 days per calendar year in union sanctioned events. Members will receive written notification of their randomly assigned Participation dates and the Locals will send each member a reminder call at least 2 days before the event. Members assigned specific dates may choose another union member to participate as a stand-in for a particular date and location. However, in the event the stand-in fails to participate in the scheduled activity, the assigned member will be held responsible for making up his/her assigned day. Each member who fails to take part in this program during the calendar year will be charged a dues assessment. The assessments are not meant to be punitive, but are designed to underscore the importance of union members coming out and supporting their union’s activities.”
Asked on October 2, 2011 under Employment Labor Law, New Jersey
Answers:
M.T.G., Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
What you are raising here are the underlying Constitutional issues that are just beneath the surface of this decree. I think that if in fact you had an issue with the "union activity" and it went against your rights under the Constitution that you would have a valid gripe and a valid claim that your rights were being infringed upon. Interesting. Now, it does not specifically state that you HAD to o to a particular event and even gives you an out of finding a stand in or re-scheduling. The fine would be an issue as well if assessed because the event that was randomly chosen for you to attend cause this conflict for you. Cross that bridge when you come to it or discus it with a Con Law attorney. Good luck.
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