They cannot force you to join
Union membership in state and local public employment is voluntary. The union must earn your consent. You opt in — you are not required to opt out year after year.
Janus Rights
Your Janus rights, in plain language
In 2018 the Supreme Court held that public employees have a First Amendment right not to fund union speech. That is the whole case. Here is what it means at work tomorrow morning.
The one sentence you need to know
“No public employee can be forced to pay any money to a union as a condition of employment.”
Janus v. AFSCME, Council 31, 585 U.S. 878 (2018)
They cannot take money without a yes
Janus requires affirmative consent before agency fees or other union payments are deducted. Silence is not consent. An old authorization can be revoked with the letters on this site.
They cannot fire you for saying no
A public employer cannot make your job depend on paying the union. That was already true of membership; Janus extended it to any payment to the union.
Your speech is not theirs
In the public sector, every bargaining position — wages, pensions, staffing — is public policy. Funding that speech without your consent violates the First Amendment. That was Messenger’s argument.
Janus covers state and local public employment in all fifty states and Puerto Rico. It does not, by itself, cover the private sector. If your employer is private, your state’s Right to Work status still matters — and the Foundation can still help you sort that out.
Start your resignation