Conservative Supreme Court hands down a rare pro-union decision

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Conservative Supreme Court hands down a rare pro-union decision

Perspective by Joe Davidson
Columnist
June 2, 2023 at 6:00 a.m. EDT

It doesn’t happen often with this Supreme Court, but federal labor leaders are celebrating a strong pro-union decision written by an archconservative justice.

To the consternation of small-government champions, the ruling also confirmed the power of a little-known federal agency over a state government militia, while granting union officials welcome respite from other hostile opinions. ... The ramifications of the decision could be far-reaching, fear union opponents, who see it as a gateway to intrusive federal power in the workplace.

Led by Justice Clarence Thomas, the 7-2 decision stopped the Ohio National Guard from unilaterally reversing a payroll union dues collection practice, while declaring itself exempt from a key federal labor law.

The May 18 decision allows voluntary paycheck dues deductions for “dual-status” civilian members of the National Guard represented by the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE). Dual-status employees are full-time civilian employees of the National Guard who also serve as part-time uniformed members of the military. The opinion refers to them as “rare-birds” who “occupy both civilian and military roles.”

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By Joe Davidson
Columnist Joe Davidson covers federal government issues in the Federal Insider, formerly the Federal Diary. Davidson previously was an assistant city editor at The Washington Post and a Washington and foreign correspondent with the Wall Street Journal, where he covered federal agencies and political campaigns. Twitter https://twitter.com/JoeDavidsonWP

[elleng]

1. 'the 7-2 decision stopped the Ohio National Guard from unilaterally reversing a payroll union dues

collection practice, while declaring itself exempt from a key federal labor law.'