Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner Monday signed an executive order eliminating unfair share dues for state employees who do not wish to fund government union activities and positions with which they may disagree.
According to a state news release, the governor’s actions come after an extensive legal review of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision last year in Harris v. Quinn. In that case, the Supreme Court ruled that the Illinois Public Labor Relations Act violated the First Amendment by forcing certain state employees to involuntarily pay fees to a labor union.
The release continues, “In light of that decision, the Rauner administration has concluded that the so-called ‘fair share’ provisions of the current collective bargaining agreements, that are similar to those invalidated by the Supreme Court in Harris v. Quinn, are also unconstitutional.”
“Forced union dues are a critical cog in the corrupt bargain that is crushing taxpayers. Government union bargaining and government union political activity are inexorably linked,” Governor Rauner said. “An employee who is forced to pay unfair share dues is being forced to fund political activity with which they disagree. That is a clear violation of First Amendment rights – and something that, as governor, I am duty-bound to correct.”
The executive order allows state employees who wish not to support government unions’ activities to stop paying the forced fees. It has no impact on those employees who wish to remain paying members of the union and fund union activities out of their paychecks.
The head of AFSCME, the state's largest public employees' union, says Rauner's order is blatant abuse of power, and says its members will work to overturn it. The General Assembly has 60 days to toss an executive order.