Para leer este aviso legal en español, por favor haga clic aquí.

News reports detail that United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 7 union bosses have issued a strike order affecting nearly 4,000 employees at the Greeley, Colorado, facility of meatpacking company JBS. Reports have also indicated that many workers are choosing to continue working as opposed to participating in the strike.

The situation presents serious concerns for JBS employees who believe there is much to lose from a union-ordered strike. That is why workers confronted with strike demands frequently contact the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation to learn how they can avoid fines and other union discipline for continuing to work to support themselves and their families.

The fact is, employees do not have to become or remain members of the UFCW or any other union to get or keep their jobs. Despite often-misleading language in union contracts, no employee can be required to be a member of a union. And if an employee is not a member of a union, union officials have no power to fine or discipline him or her during a strike. By resigning their membership, employees can rebuff union strike demands and return to work.

For five decades, the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation has worked to expand and protect the rights of individual employees in such situations. It is the nation’s premier organization exclusively dedicated to providing free legal assistance to employee victims of forced unionism abuse. In fact, Foundation cases have led to ongoing federal prosecutions against UFCW Local 7 union officials for illegally attempting to impose fines on King Soopers supermarket employees during a 2025 strike action.

JBS employees should read this notice carefully and consider contacting Foundation staff attorneys for assistance to ensure UFCW officials cannot impose any fines against them.

JBS employees should know they have the following rights:

1. 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.

   NOTE: If possible, use certified mail, return receipt requested, and save copies of your letters and the 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.

2. You have the right to go to work during a strike. Union officials can (and often do) fine union members who work during a strike. So, if you are a union member, you should seriously consider resigning BEFORE you return to work during a strike, to avoid union fines and discipline. See Union Discipline and Employee Rights.

3. You have the right to revoke your dues check-off and stop allowing the union hierarchy to collect money from your paycheck every week. You can send letters to the union and your employer revoking your authorization to have union fees deducted from your paycheck during periods when there is no collective bargaining agreement in effect.

   Because Colorado lacks Right to Work protections, workers who have abstained from union membership may be required to pay partial union dues after a new contract is finalized. However, union nonmembers have a right under the Foundation-won Communications Workers v. Beck (1988) Supreme Court decision to refuse to pay for union political expenses and other expenses not related to collective bargaining and contract administration.

   A sample letter for employees who wish to resign their union membership, revoke their dues check-off, and exercise their right under Beck to opt-out of dues deductions for union politics and other non-bargaining expenses is here.

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

Go to About Your Legal Rights: Private Sector 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.