{"id":2871,"date":"2010-04-01T15:50:49","date_gmt":"2010-04-01T15:50:49","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2019-08-13T15:59:14","modified_gmt":"2019-08-13T20:59:14","slug":"labor-board-slaps-grocery-union-bosses-with-federal-complaint-for-statewide-illegal-forced-dues-scheme-0","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nrtw.org\/es\/news\/labor-board-slaps-grocery-union-bosses-with-federal-complaint-for-statewide-illegal-forced-dues-scheme-0\/","title":{"rendered":"Labor Board Slaps Grocery Union Bosses with Federal Complaint for Statewide Illegal Forced-Dues Scheme"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\nPhoenix, AZ (April 1, 2010)<\/b> \u2013 The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) regional office in Phoenix has issued a statewide complaint alleging that local union bosses and Fry\u2019s Food Stores are illegally blocking independent-minded workers from stopping union dues payments.\n<\/p>\n

\nThe prosecution is the result of a four month long investigation of charges filed by Fry\u2019s employees with free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation attorneys. Employees from several Fry\u2019s locations filed the federal charges challenging the United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 99 union hierarchy and Fry\u2019s management, after union and company officials refused to honor the employees\u2019 legal rights to revoke their dues deduction authorizations and continued to illegally seize union dues from their paychecks.\n<\/p>\n

\nUpset by the UFCW Local 99 strike threat last November, the employees resigned from the union and revoked their dues deduction authorizations \u2013 used by union officials to automatically withhold dues from employee paychecks \u2013 during a time in which the union did not have a contract at their workplaces. Under Arizona\u2019s popular Right to Work law, no worker can be required to join or pay any money to a union; and under federal labor law, employees can revoke their dues deduction authorizations once a contract terminates.\n<\/p>\n

\nThe Phoenix NLRB regional director found that the dues deduction authorizations used by UFCW Local 99 union officials at all Fry\u2019s locations are illegal because the dues deduction authorizations do not allow employees to revoke them during contract hiatus periods, as required by federal law.\n<\/p>\n

\nSuspecting that the illegal dues deduction forms are used in all workplaces in Arizona where UFCW union bosses enjoy monopoly bargaining privileges, Foundation attorneys are now offering free legal aid to all employees affected by the illegal UFCW dues deduction authorizations.\n<\/p>\n

\n\u201cUFCW Local 99 bosses are likely violating the rights of tens of thousands of workers across the state of Arizona\u201d said Patrick Semmens, Director of Legal Information at National Right to Work. \u201cWe intend to make sure that UFCW operatives play by the rules and stop extracting union dues from workers who, under Arizona\u2019s popular Right to Work law, cannot be forced to pay union dues.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

\nWith free legal assistance from the Foundation, Shirley Jones of Mesa; Karen Medley and Elaine Brown of Apache Junction; Kimberly Stewart and Saloomeh Hardy of Queen Creek; and Tommy and Janette Fuentes of Florence \u2013 acting for other similarly situated employees \u2013 filed the federal unfair labor practice charges that spurred the NLRB to investigate and issue a statewide complaint against UFCW Local 99 union bosses.\n<\/p>\n

\nNote:<\/b> Here is the list of UFCW organized employers in Arizona:\n<\/p>\n