Missouri Congressman Eric Burlison Introduces Bill to Stop Automatic Union Payroll Deductions

Below is a press release from Missouri Congressman Eric Burlison.

Rep. Eric Burlison (MO-07) introduced the Paycheck Protection Act, which will establish transparency and protect the rights of federal employees by prohibiting labor unions from deducting dues directly from their paychecks.

Labor unions, unlike other dues-paying membership groups, are allowed to deduct dues directly from paychecks. The Paycheck Protection Act eliminates this unnecessary and harmful practice by requiring federal labor unions to collect dues payments directly from their members. This will empower workers with vital information about the exact amount of dues they pay, thereby promoting transparency, financial awareness, and informed decision-making.

Rep. Eric Burlison said,“The government should not be in the business of giving preferential treatment to labor unions. Whether or not a worker chooses to join a union and pay dues is up to them. The federal government should not help unions do their job by collecting dues on their behalf. The Paycheck Protection Act is essential to foster transparency and help federal workers make more informed decisions about their hard-earned wages.”

Aaron Withe, CEO of the Freedom Foundation said, “The Freedom Foundation commends Rep. Burlison for his leadership in introducing this important legislation. Taxpayers shouldn’t have to pay for government payroll systems to fundraise for politically partisan labor unions who use their access to federal employees’ paychecks to coerce them into membership and lock them into nearly irrevocable dues payments. Getting government out of the union dues collection business and making unions collect their own dues would make unions more accountable to their members and give federal workers greater control over their financial relationship with unions.”

The Paycheck Protection Act is cosponsored by Reps. Bob Good, Mary Miller, Glenn Grothman, Andy Ogles, and Tom Tiffany.

Heritage Action, Institute for the American Worker, Freedom Foundation, National Right to Work Committee, and the Mackinac Center for Public Policy are supportive of the bill.

Read the bill text here