WATCH: Freedom Foundation working to help WA teachers opt out of union dues

(The Center Square) – The Freedom Foundation, a conservative think tank based in Olympia, Wash., is making a final push to inform Washington teachers that only a few days remain to opt out of paying union dues to the Washington Education Association.

Sept. 1 is the deadline for Evergreen State educators to make a decision about union participation. After that date, teachers can still opt out of union participation; however, their monthly dues will still be collected until this time next year.

Freedom Foundation Washington State Outreach Director Erin Volz spoke with The Center Square about the organization’s efforts to inform teachers about their rights regarding union dues.

“Teachers are the ones [who] feel the most pressure,” she said. “There’s a lot of bullying, and there are cliques in education. And so, teachers are terrified to leave because they just feel that they're going to be bullied into submission again.”

Prior to 2018, teachers and other public employees were compelled to pay union dues, but the U.S. Supreme Court’s Janus decision ruled that states’ public sector employees cannot be forced to pay agency fees or dues to a union as a condition of employment.

The Freedom Foundation has led the charge in assisting public employees in opting out of union dues. Members sometimes want to leave the union because they don’t agree with union politics.

“Summertime is a pretty heavy opt-out time because you've got a lot of teachers [who] are off for the summer,” Volz said. “So, they're not feeling the pressure to stay in the union. And that gives me plenty of time to message them and let them know you've got a deadline in September; if you don't opt out before then, you're going to be forced to pay dues for another year.”

She explained members can opt out at any time of year, but if they miss the Sept. 1 deadline, they will continue paying monthly union dues for another year.

“Washington’s teachers are catching on to their union’s divisive and problematic political interventionism in their classrooms and at the capitol. They are armed with the power of information,” Volz wrote in an Aug. 19 blog.

Teachers who opt out of paying union dues are still represented in collective bargaining and receive all benefits, but do give up voting rights on contracts and other union activities.

“I talked to a teacher who just recently opted out. She's paid over $1,500 in dues a year to WEA, and she didn't know that she could opt out,” noted Volz, who said that many teachers don’t check their auto-deposit pay stubs to see how much they pay to the union. “It's out of sight, out of mind."

Volz said WEA is spending a large chunk of its members' union dues on left-leaning political campaigns and legislation.

“The WEA in the most recent 990 tax filing that we've been looking at – they spent over a million dollars on their PAC with union dues. That's political spending. And it’s parceled out to many different candidates,” she said.

In the meantime, the WEA is messaging members with a counter-narrative.

“Extremist political groups like the Washington Policy Center and Freedom Foundation (aka, Opt Out Today) are attacking our right to be represented by our union and our ability to advocate for our students. The Freedom Foundation and other anti-union groups don't support us or our students – and are actually fighting against what our students need to be successful,” the WEA states on its website.

The Freedom Foundation is also working to get members of the Washington Federation of State Employees to opt out of union dues.

“WFSE was bragging about how they'd gotten 500 people to sign up,” Volz said. “And I was laughing because this year, so far, I've gotten 775 people out. So, they're still down, and this year is not even over yet.”

The Center Square contacted WEA for comment on the Freedom Foundation’s push for union opt-outs but did not receive a response.