Opting out is supposed to be both legal and easy
Every month, more public employees exercise their First Amendment right to decline union membership and dues. Or try to, only to run headlong into labor leaders who’ve concluded that while opting out is legal, the process doesn’t have to be easy or painless.
In this month’s installment of Opting Out: Public Employees Speak Out, consider the story of a government worker found herself trapped in a bureaucratic mess.
She first tried to opt out of Oregon’s SEIU 503 last year. After signing the necessary paperwork, she assumed her dues would stop, but months later, she checked her pay stub and saw that deductions were still coming out.
Confused, she reached out to union leaders. Their response? Don’t worry about it. Once you’re promoted to a supervisor, the deductions will stop automatically.
That turned out to be false.
Not only did the deductions continue after her promotion, but she also discovered that she was now being charged for contributions to SEIU 503’s political action committee (PAC) —something she never agreed to. At this point, it was no longer just about the money; it was about principle.
She had explicitly opted out, but SEIU 503 ignored her request, gave her false information and then enrolled her in additional dues categories without her permission.
To make matters worse, when she contacted her payroll department for help, they told her it wasn’t their problem and directed her back to SEIU 503 — without even providing contact information.
She had to wait until an employee appreciation event just to track down a union representative.
Then, as if things couldn’t get more ridiculous, she received a letter stating that her union membership had been automatically changed to an associate membership due to her promotion. No approval, no consent — just a forced continuation of the very arrangement she had been trying to end.
Fed up, she pushed harder, demanding her dues finally be stopped. After months of back-and-forth emails, SEIU 503 finally responded: Her cancellation would be processed — next year.
They claimed it was too late to stop deductions for the next pay period, despite knowing she had requested to opt out months ago.
SEIU 503 promised that if any more deductions occurred, they would issue a refund. But would they actually follow through?
As of today, not yet.
This story highlights exactly why the Freedom Foundation does what it does. Opting out is supposed to be a straightforward choice, yet unions like SEIU 503 routinely make it difficult, hoping employees will get frustrated and give up.
This government employee refused to back down — but she shouldn’t have had to fight this hard just to stop paying for something she didn’t want to be a part of.
If you’re reading this and you’re still paying union dues, feeling trapped by your union, know that you’re not alone. You do have the right to opt out, and we’re here to help make sure your voice is heard.
Or maybe you’ve already opted out and want to help a coworker make the same choice. Wherever you are in your journey, we’re here to help. Reach out to one of our dedicated outreach staff members — we’d be happy to assist you.
Let’s keep sharing these stories — because no one should be forced to pay for a union they don’t support.
