Central Coast organizations react to Supreme Court decision on Janus v AFSCME

A number of Central Coast organizations responded unfavorably to a Supreme Court decision made in the case of Janus v AFSCME.

The Supreme Court ultimately ruled government workers who choose not to join a union should not be charged for the cost of collective bargaining.

The Monterey Bay Central Labor Council was quick to respond to the ruling and say this decision stands to prevent union members from standing together.

Salinas Valley Federation of Teachers also spoke out against the decision. The organization says this decision could ultimately force wages and benefits to lower.

“The reality is for union locals that haven’t been paying attention to the needs of their members, they have some work to do,” says SVFT President Steve McDougal.

McDougal says the majority of the teachers he spoke to on the Central Coast recognize the value of being union members and making those payments.

Those against the Supreme Court’s decision are holding rallies across the Central Coast to voice their concerns.

Santa Cruz, Salinas and Watsonville are among the many sites for rallies scheduled to take place Wednesday evening.

The SCOTUS decision overturns an initial ruling which had been in place since the 1970s.

There are a number of state proponents of the ruling.

In a statement, Republican Assemblyman Matthew Harper said “Today’s ruling is a victory for the millions of workers who should not be forced to pay into a union as a condition of employment. I applaud the Supreme Court for taking the first steps to give public employees more control over their paychecks.”

U.S. Senator Kamala Harris also issued a statement: “We also cannot ignore that this decision is part of an ongoing trend of the Roberts Court that has repeatedly sided with employers over employees, corporations over consumers, and special interests over vulnerable Americans.”