The Truth About Janus v. AFSCME Council 31

Janus v. AFSCME Council 31 is a Supreme Court case that aims to take away the freedom of working people to join together in strong unions to speak up for themselves, their families, and their communities.

The case started as a political scheme by the billionaire governor of Illinois, Bruce Rauner. He launched an attack to reduce the power of public service workers immediately after taking office, filing a lawsuit to bar the collection of fair share fees by public service unions.

The National Right to Work Foundation, a network funded by corporate billionaires that uses the courts to rig the rules against everyday working people, took up the case and put it on the fast track to the Supreme Court.

Unions work because we all pay our fair share and we all benefit from what we negotiate together. Fair share fees provide public service workers, including over 100,000 CWA members, with the power in numbers they need to negotiate better wages, benefits, and protections that improve work conditions and set standards for everyone.

The simple truth is that no one is forced to join a union and no one is forced to pay any fees that go to politics or political candidates. That is already the law of the land. Nothing in this case will change that. This case is about taking away the freedom of working people to come together, speak up for each other, and build a better life for themselves and their families.

CWA has been preparing members and bargaining units for a negative decision through the CWA STRONG program.