On Sunday, February 1, the Steelworkers Union bosses ordered about 3,800 refinery workers to strike their employers in nine plants located in Texas, California, Kentucky, and Washington State. On February 7, two other plants were struck in Indiana and Ohio, and more may be struck in coming days. Most of the plants will, however, continue to remain in operation.

If you are a refinery worker at a struck plant, you have the right to rebuff union strike demands under federal labor law and return to work during the strike if your plant remains open.

For over four decades, the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation has worked in the courts to expand and protect the rights of individual employees in such situations.

Each of you has the following rights:

1) You have the right to resign your Steelworkers’ membership. You can send the union a letter resigning your membership.

2) You have the right to go to work even after the Steelworkers’ bosses ordered this strike. Union officials can (and often do) fine actual union members who work during a strike. So, you should seriously consider resigning BEFORE you return to work during a strike, which is the only way to avoid these union fines and discipline. See Union Discipline and Employees Rights.

3) You also have the right to revoke your dues check-off and stop allowing the Steelworkers’ hierarchy to collect money from your paycheck every week. You can send letters to the local union and your employer revoking your authorization to have union dues deducted from your paycheck.

4) If you wish to eject an unaccountable union hierarchy from your workplace, you have the right to sign a decertification petition to obtain a secret ballot election to do so. See Decertification Election.

A sample letter for employees who wish to resign their union membership and revoke their dues check-off is here if you are in a Right to Work state (such as Texas) and here if you are not in a Right to Work state (such as California, Kentucky, and Washington). NOTE: If possible, use certified mail, return receipt requested, and save copies of your letters and return receipt to prove delivery. If you hand deliver a resignation and/or dues deduction revocation, make sure that you have a reliable witness to the delivery. In our experience, it is not uncommon for angry and dishonest union officials to pretend they did not actually receive resignations and initiate proceedings against non-striking workers anyway.

If you need legal advice or assistance in exercising your rights, you can request it here or by calling toll-free 800-336-3600 or sending a message to legal@nrtw.org

Go to About Your Legal Rights: Private Sector Employee to learn more about your rights.