2017 came to a productive and informative close with the Freedom Foundation bringing Christmas cheer to thousands of families across the Pacific Northwest (PNW)—and confounding union grinches.
In a single day, the Freedom Foundation’s designated Santa handed out more than 450 brochures to government employees informing them of their right to stop paying the political portion of their dues.
In three weeks of visiting government offices, Santa and his helpers distributed more than 5,000 brochures to workers across the entire PNW.
Wherever Santa goes, there are always employees who are incredibly grateful to learn about their rights, often lamenting they wish they’d known sooner.
Traveling east of the Cascades, Santa visited DSHS offices in Wenatchee and Omak, where his efforts were welcomed by some very grateful workers.
There were those too who were added to the naughty list, like the Washington State Department of Ecology, who kicked Santa out for the second straight year, and a couple of administrators at the Department of Transportation (DOT) in Wenatchee who ordered Santa not to come and later called the police when he ignored their warnings.
Santa and the Freedom Foundation have a good relationship with law enforcement, and we have great respect for those who serve our community. Santa, of course, was not arrested for informing people on public property about their constitutional rights.
As for the workers themselves, the majority were excited to learn their rights – and furious when they discovered their own union had lied to them.
The last stop Santa made to brighten government workers Christmas of 2017 was the Department of Transportation in Wenatchee. While workers laughed and jollied with Santa, they asked if he’d be helping with the case in front of the U.S. Supreme Court, Janus v. AFSCME, that may lead to right-to-work this summer for all public employees.
Santa may know when you’re sleeping and when you’re awake, but when it comes to those who’ve been naughty, Santa doesn’t go to court. He leaves that to his Freedom Foundation attorneys, who filed an amicus brief on Dec. 6.
Happy New Year and may every public employee be informed of their rights.
