One government worker’s $45 non-member union fee could result in the loss of millions of members and dollars for unions. The Supreme Court is set to hear what is being called the labor case of the century. Mark Janus, an Illinois public employee, is the lead petitioner in Janus v. American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. AFSCME is the nation’s largest public service union. He says when the union collected a portion of his pay check as a part of a “fair share fee” it was a violation of his First Amendment rights, because the union supported political causes he didn’t support. The union warns that if the Court agrees with Janus, they’ll lose resources to negotiate benefits, pensions and salaries for workers. The case is being closely watched by unions and law experts alike, including UCLA Law Professor Eugene Volokh who filed a friend of the court brief. He’s a fierce free speech advocate, yet he says this case has nothing to do with the First Amendment. He joins Soledad O’Brien for a conversation on the historical nuances of the case, the possibility of 40 years of labor law precedent being overturned and whether compulsion of fees violates your freedom of speech.
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