According to multiple news reports, Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA) union officials have ordered multiple American Airlines flight attendants terminated for non-payment of APFA union dues, and threatened others with imminent termination if they do not pay thousands of dollars in supposedly-owed back dues. At the same time, APFA union officials have announced a massive (nearly 50%) mandatory union dues increase.
The situation raises real concerns for employees who have had or could have their livelihoods upended solely for failing to bankroll APFA union bosses’ increasingly costly expenditures. That is why workers faced with threats for not paying union dues frequently contact the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation to learn how to defend their rights and their livelihoods.
The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation is the nation’s premier organization exclusively dedicated to providing free legal assistance to employees victimized by forced-unionism abuse. The Foundation has a long history of defending workers against unlawful actions by union officials. Foundation staff attorneys have represented airline employees before, challenging union officials’ overreach and violations of workers’ constitutionally protected rights.
IF YOU HAVE BEEN FIRED OR ARE BEING THREATENED WITH TERMINATION RELATED TO UNION DEMANDS FOR DUES PAYMENTS, YOU ARE ENCOURAGED TO CONTACT THE FOUNDATION AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. A Foundation attorney can evaluate your situation to advise you of your rights and options.
More generally, American Airlines flight attendants should know they have the following rights:
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You have the right not to be a union member. If you’re currently a union member, you can resign your union membership by sending the union a letter resigning your membership. If possible, use certified mail, return receipt requested, and save copies of your resignation letters and the return receipt to prove delivery. If you hand deliver a resignation letter, make sure that you have a reliable witness to the delivery. As a nonmember you are covered by the union contract the same as any member.
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You can exercise your rights under the Railway Labor Act to pay less than full union dues by cutting off payments for union politics and other nonbargaining activities. Contrary to claims union officials frequently make, full union dues payment cannot be required as a condition of employment. Under Foundation-won U.S. Supreme Court precedents, nonmember employees under the RLA have the right to pay reduced union fees that exclude political and other union expenses. Additionally, employees with religious objections to a union may be able to end all financial support to that union.
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If you wish to eject the APFA from your workplace, you have the right to circulate or sign a decertification petition to obtain a secret ballot election. A decertification election would give American Airlines flight attendants the ability to vote in a secret ballot election on whether they want APFA officials to exclusively represent them. If the APFA is decertified, it could no longer compel employees to pay union dues or fees to keep their jobs. See Decertification under the RLA.
Go to About Your Legal Rights: Railway or Airline Employee to learn more about your rights, and contact the NRTW Foundation at https://www.nrtw.org/free-legal-aid, legal@nrtw.org, or 800-336-3600 with any questions.
