10th Circuit Agrees With Right to Work Foundation: Utah Unions Have No Right to Payroll Deduction for Politics

But a more effective alternative would have been stopping government payroll deduction for all union dues

Salt Lake City, UT (April 22, 2009) – The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit yesterday reversed itself and ruled to uphold a Utah statute prohibiting union officials from using payroll deduction to divert teachers’ and other government workers’ money into union electioneering.

“Utah has a legitimate interest in avoiding the reality or appearance of government entanglement with partisan politics” and Utah’s Voluntary Contributions Act “plainly serves the State’s interest in separating public employment from political activities,” the court held.

The National Right to Work Foundation joined in an amici brief with the Utah-based Sutherland Institute (and others) to defend the Utah statute which had previously been struck down. After initially siding with union attorneys who argued the law somehow violated the constitutional rights of the union, the Tenth Circuit put the case on hold pending the outcome of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling involving a similar Idaho statute.

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Click here to read the rest of the Foundation's press release. The Deseret News covered the reversal here.

Adding the a string of cases supported by the National Right to Work Foundation, the U.S. Supreme Court took up another case Monday. At issue is whether a Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision that limited the applicability of an Idaho state law banning payroll deductions for union Political Action Committees (PACs) will stand. Foundation attorneys urged the High Court to take up the case alongside the Sutherland Institute and Utah Taxpayers Association.

Foundation Vice President Stefan Gleason told the AP earlier this week that:

"Payroll deduction should not be a constitutionally protected right. We feel it's bad public policy to have government bodies essentially be bagmen for union political monies."

To read the full article, click here. To read more about the Foundation's Supreme Court track record, click here.