MIDLAND, Mich. — An amicus brief filed at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit argues that Indiana is allowed to inform people of their First Amendment rights. The brief was jointly submitted by the Liberty Justice Center, Mackinac Center for Public Policy and Freedom Foundation. The Liberty Justice Center brought the landmark U.S. Supreme Court Janus v. AFSCME case, which established right-to-work protections for public sector workers across the country. The Mackinac Center was cited in the opinion.

Indiana enacted a law in 2021 that required the state to inform school employees that they have the right to choose whether or not to join a union without fear of retribution. That same law also prevented the state from deducting dues without clear and affirmative consent from employees.

“The Supreme Court in Janus v. AFSCME said that public employees have a constitutional right not to pay a union,” said Jeffery Schwab, Senior Counsel with the Liberty Justice Center. “This law protects employees from waiving that right without even knowing about it.”

The U.S. Supreme Court clearly recognized that payroll deductions are a benefit to unions at the expense of taxpayers, the brief states. Because of this, the state has the ability to place reasonable requirements on these deductions. The Indiana law simply requires unions to obtain permission from individuals before taking dues from their paychecks.

The U.S. Supreme Court and multiple Circuit Courts of Appeal have upheld similar standards from other states.

Despite enjoying the privilege of having the state deduct union dues on their behalf, Indiana unions are challenging this law. The unions argue that its unnecessary to inform employees of their constitutional rights. Unfortunately, many employees are not aware of their rights and may join a union due to a mistaken belief that they have no other choice.

“Payroll deductions are a taxpayer-funded gift to unions,” Steve Delie, director of labor policy at the Mackinac Center. “If the state is going to act as the union’s bill collector, the least it can do is to make sure that employees know their rights. The Indiana law protects employees from coercion and manipulation by simply requiring their signed consent.”

Read the full brief here.

Learn more about the Indiana law here.