Dear Representative,

I am writing to respectfully urge you to vote “NO” on House Bill 1507 and Senate Bill 1034, the so-called “paycheck protection” legislation.

This legislation has nothing to do with protecting anyone’s paycheck or their rights in the workplace. This is simply the latest attack on collective bargaining rights funded by wealthy, anonymous interests from out of state who will go to great lengths to destroy unions in America.

These interests, which refuse to disclose the sources of their financing, are making misleading arguments to attack bargaining rights that have virtually no basis in reality. Their goal is to starve unions of resources and force them to spend their time and energy collecting dues payments instead of representing workers.

Payroll deductions and “fair share” fees are not forced. They are deductions that are bargained between the employer and the union and must be contractually approved by both. The General Assembly should continue to allow these issues to be resolved through the collective bargaining process and not by legislative fiat.

Anti-worker interests are trying to spread a misleading theme that public employees are somehow forced to join a union against their will and make political contributions to candidates with whom they disagree. No public employee in Pennsylvania is forced to join a union. However, unions are required by law to represent each employee of the bargaining unit regardless of his or her membership in the union. Fair share fees are a reasonable way for unions to recover the actual cost of representing workers who choose not to join the union and pay dues, and these fees can only be used for activities such as negotiating and enforcing a contract, legal representation for grievances, and governance activities. These fees do not fund political activities, which are exclusively funded by voluntary contributions.

The argument that employers should not be using their administrative resources to deduct union dues and fees is ridiculous. Payroll systems are highly automated and already equipped to process various deductions for a wide variety of purposes, including contributions to charities. There is virtually no cost for using existing payroll technology to process these deductions. Instead, this legislation is simply a misleading effort to distract the public and attack the ability of unions to vigorously represent the members of their bargaining units.

I find it particularly sickening that the entities pushing this legislation refuse to disclose the sources of their contributions. In contrast, labor unions engaged in political activity publicly disclose all of their expenditures, as well as the sources of their contributions—hard working, tax-paying Pennsylvania voters!

These bills pose a direct threat to collective bargaining rights of ALL employees—both public and private sector. Pennsylvania’s labor unions helped to create the high quality standard of living all workers in our great commonwealth enjoy. This legislation will not create a single job, nor will it do anything to improve the quality of life for our fellow citizens.

As you know, I have made my opinion known to you previously on many important legislative issues. Though we may not agree on every issue, I never send you a letter that is not factual or critical to the future of my industry. I wouldn’t take up your valuable time if I did not think House Bill 1507 and Senate Bill 1034 were reckless, damaging, and unnecessary pieces of legislation. What makes Pennsylvania great is its workers—protect them and their rights by voting “NO” on these terrible bills.

Thank you for your consideration