Agency shop

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An agency shop is a form of union security agreement where the employer may hire union or non-union workers, and employees need not join the union in order to remain employed. [1] However, the non-union worker must pay a fee to cover collective bargaining costs. [1] The fee paid by non-union members under the agency shop is known as the "agency fee". [2] [3]

Where the agency shop is illegal, as is common in labor law governing American public sector unions, a "fair share provision" may be agreed to by the union and the employer. [2] [3] The provision requires non-union employees to pay a "fair share fee" to cover the costs of the union's collective bargaining activities. The "fair share" is similar to the agency shop, but usually more restrictive as to what may be charged to the non-member.[ clarification needed ] [2] [3] In Canada, the agency fee is usually known as the Rand formula. [4] In the United States, compelling payment of agency fees from non-union employees in the public sector was held unconstitutional in Janus v. AFSCME , in June 2018.

International Labour Organization covenants do not address the legality of agency fee provisions, leaving the question up to each individual nation. [5] The legal status of agency shop agreements varies widely from country to country, ranging from bans on the agreement to extensive regulation of the agreement to not mentioning it at all.

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Abood v. Detroit Board of Education, 431 U.S. 209 (1977), was a US labor law case where the United States Supreme Court upheld the maintaining of a union shop in a public workplace. Public school teachers in Detroit had sought to overturn the requirement that they pay fees equivalent to union dues on the grounds that they opposed public sector collective bargaining and objected to the political activities of the union. In a unanimous decision, the Court affirmed that the union shop, legal in the private sector, is also legal in the public sector. They found that non-members may be assessed agency fees to recover the costs of "collective bargaining, contract administration, and grievance adjustment purposes" while insisting that objectors to union membership or policy may not have their dues used for other ideological or political purposes.

South African labour law regulates the relationship between employers, employees and trade unions in the Republic of South Africa.

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Janus v. American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, Council 31, No. 16-1466, 585 U.S. ___ (2018), abbreviated Janus v. AFSCME, is a landmark decision of the US Supreme Court on US labor law, concerning the power of labor unions to collect fees from non-union members. Under the Taft–Hartley Act of 1947, which applies to the private sector, union security agreements can be allowed by state law. The Supreme Court ruled that such union fees in the public sector violate the First Amendment right to free speech, overruling the 1977 decision in Abood v. Detroit Board of Education that had previously allowed such fees.

References

  1. 1 2 Pynes, Joan. Human Resources Management for Public and Nonprofit Organizations. 2d ed. Hoboken, N.J.: John Wiley and Sons, 2004. ISBN   0-7879-7078-6 [ page needed ]
  2. 1 2 3 Guerin, Lisa and DelPo, Amy. The Manager's Legal Handbook. Rev. 4th ed. Berkeley, Calif.: Nolo, 2007. ISBN   1-4133-0718-3 [ page needed ]; Mc Closkey, Margie Ransom; Rubin, Richard S. (1977). "Union Security in the Public Sector: Types, Problems, Trends". The Journal of Collective Negotiations . 6 (4): 1. doi:10.2190/UJAU-1DJJ-0H1C-NBRJ.
  3. 1 2 3 Mauer, Michael (2001). The Union Member's Complete Guide: Everything You Want—and Need—to Know About Working Union. Annapolis, Md.: Union Communication Services, Inc. pp. 26–28. ISBN   0-9659486-1-7.
  4. McMenemy, John. The Language of Canadian Politics: A Guide to Important Terms and Concepts. Rev. ed. Waterloo, Ontario, Canada: Wilfrid Laurier University Press, 1995. ISBN   0-88920-230-3 [ page needed ]
  5. "Case(s) No(s). 188, Report No. 34 (Denmark): Complaints against the Government of Denmark presented by Swiss Printing Workers' Union and the Swiss Federation of National Christian Trade Unions". Archived 2011-06-04 at the Wayback Machine Document No. 031960034188. Cases of the Committee on Freedom of Association. International Labor Organization. March 4, 1959.