An ongoing strike ordered by officials of the Bakery, Confectionary, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union affects roughly 1,400 Kellogg employees at plants in Battle Creek, Michigan; Omaha, Nebraska; Lancaster, Pennsylvania; and Memphis, Tennessee.

News reports indicate union officials rejected Kellogg’s “Last Best Final Offer” without allowing workers to vote on the matter. The situation raises serious concerns for Kellogg employees who believe there is much to lose from the ongoing union-ordered strike.

Workers have the right under federal labor law to rebuff union officials’ strike demands, but it is important for you to get informed before you do so.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO WORK DURING A STRIKE READ ALL OF THIS SPECIAL NOTICE BEFORE RETURNING TO WORK – IT MIGHT SAVE YOU THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS!

Kellogg workers may want to contact the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation to learn how they can avoid fines and other vicious union discipline for continuing to report to work to support themselves and their families. Much of the important information about your rights can be found on our website here.

The Foundation wants you to learn about your legal rights from independent sources. You should not rely on what self-interested union officials tell you. For over four decades, Foundation attorneys have worked in the courts to protect and expand the rights of individual employees in situations such as strikes. It is the nation’s premier organization exclusively dedicated to providing free legal assistance to employee victims of forced unionism abuse.

Kellogg employees should know they have the following rights:

1) You have the right to resign your membership in the union. If you don’t support the union, you can send the union a letter resigning your membership.

2) You have the right to go to work during a strike. Union officials can (and often do) levy onerous monetary fines against union members who work during a strike. So, you should seriously consider resigning your union membership BEFORE you return to work during a strike, which is the only certain way to avoid these ruinous union fines and discipline. (See “Union Discipline and Employee Rights.”) Your resignation letter must be postmarked THE DAY BEFORE you return to work, or delivered BEFORE you actually return to work.

3) You also have the right to revoke your dues checkoff and stop allowing the union to collect money from your paycheck every week. When there is no collective bargaining agreement in effect you can send letters to the union and your employer revoking your authorization to have union dues deducted from your paycheck.

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

You use the specific sample letters for the Locals involved in the strike:

NOTE: While not legally required, it is a better practice to send your letter to the union by certified mail, return receipt requested, and save a copy of your letter and the return receipt to prove delivery. If you hand deliver a letter, make sure that you have a reliable witness to the delivery. In our experience, angry and dishonest union officials often pretend they did not actually receive resignations and initiate discipline against non-striking workers anyway. If this happens to you, immediately contact the National Right to Work Foundation to request free legal aid.