One Year Later, Janus Decision Still Hasn’t Hurt Unions
A year after a landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling that threatened to cripple public sector unions, they seem to be holding their own.
Government employees, it turns out, see value in belonging to unions. Membership in Illinois government unions actually has increased a year after the June 27, 2018, ruling in Janus vs. AFSCME, as Sun-Times Washington Bureau Chief Lynn Sweet reported in a recent column.
The new members’ dues are offsetting any revenue loss caused by the Janus decision, which allows government workers to no longer have to pay “fair-share fees” to unions. Before the ruling, unions were allowed to collect such fees from non-member government employees to cover the costs of collective bargaining and related expenses.
Organized labor has reason to celebrate. It’s holding its own against ultra-conservative and corporate union busters.