{"id":1967,"date":"2008-02-06T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2008-02-06T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2016-06-13T15:50:08","modified_gmt":"2016-06-13T15:50:08","slug":"can-i-be-required-to-be-a-union-member-or-pay-dues-to-a-union-11","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.nrtw.org\/es\/can-i-be-required-to-be-a-union-member-or-pay-dues-to-a-union-11\/","title":{"rendered":"\u00bfMe pueden obligar a hacerme miembro del sindicato o a pagarle cuotas?"},"content":{"rendered":"

You cannot be required to be a union member<\/strong>, but you may be required to
\npay union fees. Employment relations for employees in the railway and airline
\nindustries are covered by the Railway
\nLabor Act (RLA)<\/A>. Railway and airline employees are not protected by
\nstate Right to Work laws. <\/p>\n

Under the RLA, you cannot be required to be a member of a union or pay
\nit any monies as a condition of employment unless the collective bargaining
\nagreement between your employer and your union contains a provision requiring
\nall employees to either join the union or pay union fees. <\/p>\n

Even if there is such a provision in the agreement, the most that can be
\nrequired of you is to pay the union fees (generally called an "agency
\nfee.") <\/p>\n

If you are not a member, you are still fully covered by the collective
\nbargaining agreement that was negotiated between your employer and the
\nunion, and the union is obligated to represent you. Any benefits that are
\nprovided to you by your employer pursuant to the collective bargaining
\nagreement (e.g., wages, seniority, vacations, pensions, health insurance)
\nare not affected by your nonmembership. (If the union offers some
\n\u00abmembers-only\u00bb benefits, you might be excluded from receiving those.)<\/p>\n

If you are not a member, you may not be able to participate in union
\nelections or meetings, vote in collective bargaining ratification
\nelections, or participate in other \u00abinternal\u00bb union activities. However,
\nyou cannot be disciplined by the union for anything you do while not a member.<\/p>\n

The Supreme Court, in Ellis
\nv. BRAC,<\/I> 466 U.S. 435 (1984)<\/A>, a lawsuit that was supported by the
\nFoundation, ruled that objecting nonmembers cannot be required to pay union
\ndues. The most that nonmembers can be required to pay is an agency fee that
\nequals their share of what the union can prove is its costs of collective
\nbargaining, contract administration, and grievance adjustment with their
\nemployer. <\/p>\n

Except in extraordinary cases, the union’s costs of collective bargaining,
\ncontract administration, and grievance adjustment do not equal the dues
\namount. <\/p>\n

Ellis<\/I> makes clear that nonmembers required to pay union fees as
\na condition of employment have a right under the RLA to object and obtain
\na reduction of their compulsory payments so that they do not include union
\nexpenses for purposes other than collective bargaining, contract administration,
\nand grievance adjustment. <\/p>\n

The union must establish certain procedures to safeguard your
\nright to pay only a limited fee to the union. These safeguards include giving
\nyou: <\/p>\n