U.S. SC will hear case involving union fees
JESSICA M. KARMASEK | Legal Newsline.com
June 28, 2011
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) – The U.S. Supreme Court agreed Monday to review an appeals court’s ruling that a union is not required, in addition to an annual fee notice to members, to send a second notice when adopting a temporary, mid-term fee increase.
In its Dec. 10 decision, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the judgment of a district court in Knox v. California State Employees Association, Local 1000, Service Employees International Union.
The appeals court argued that the district court’s direction that a union must issue a second notice when it intends “to depart drastically from its typical spending regime and to focus on activities that (are) political or ideological in nature” is “practically unworkable.”
“Union spending may vary substantially from year to year — in one year there may be a new collective bargaining agreement negotiated, resulting in a high chargeable percentage for objectors that is followed by an election year that results in a low chargeable percentage for objectors,” the court wrote.
via LegalNewsline.
