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Janus v. AFSCME Key Points

CWA STRONGCorporate special interest groups have been working for decades to strip away workers’ freedom to join together and negotiate for fair wages and benefits, and to improve our workplaces. They want to turn back the clock on achievements like Social Security, civil rights, wage and hour and safety laws, Medicare, and public education that unions fight every day to preserve.

Janus v. AFSCME Council 31 is a Supreme Court case that was designed to take away the freedom of working people to join together in strong unions to speak up for themselves, their families, and their communities.

We have never depended on any politician or judge to decide our fate and we aren’t about to start now.

  • Working people are more resolved than ever to stick together and fight back against any attacks that attempt to divide us. That’s because America needs unions now more than ever to fix a democracy and economy rigged in favor of the wealthy and powerful.
  • CWA members have been preparing for this moment through our CWA STRONG program. We are committed to doing whatever it takes so that we may continue to represent our members, speak up for our communities and improve our workplaces.
  • CWA members are fighting back and winning on our own terms. Workers at Verizon, AT&T Mobility, Frontier Communications, and Momentive Performance Materials have gone on strike and won gains through strong collective bargaining. Our public worker membership is growing, even in states like Texas that prohibit collective bargaining for public employees. We’ve stood in solidarity with teachers and other public employees in many different states walking out and standing up to special interests – and winning.

Taking away the freedom of working people to join together to improve their workplaces is the primary goal of the people who brought this case to the Supreme Court, and eliminating fair share fees for public employees is the latest tactic.

  • Unions are required by law to represent and negotiate on the behalf of all workers in a bargaining unit, regardless of whether the individuals we represent are dues-paying members.
  • Corporate backers hope to bleed unions and the working people we represent of precious resources, taking away our ability to win progress and making it easier to roll back what took decades to win.
  • This case is about taking away the freedom of working people to come together, speak up for each other, and build a better life for themselves and their families.

We know it is possible to survive and grow our power without agency fees. We don’t need to look further than the many locals in so-called “right to work” states who have maintained a strong internal organizing structure and robust membership.

  • After right to work legislation passed in Indiana and Michigan, we fought back and ended up with fewer non-members than before the law passed.
  • We’ve seen the strength of CWA members as workers at Verizon, AT&T, Frontier Communications, and Momentive Performance Materials have gone on strike and won gains through strong collective bargaining. Our public worker membership is growing, even in states like Texas that prohibit collective bargaining for public employees. We’ve stood in solidarity with teachers and other public employees in many different states walking out and standing up to special interests – and winning.

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