John,

This is the second in a three part series examining how the court system has been turned against workers and unions in America—and how we can fight back. 

Part 2 — The U.S. Supreme Court’s attack on public sector unions. 

The very first public-employee labor agreement in America was negotiated in Butte, Montana in 1935 by the Butte Teachers Union, AFT Local No. 332. Since then, Montana has had a proud history of strong public sector unions and labor peace. 

But nationally, a coordinated campaign by conservative activists has sought to undermine the very structures that make public sector bargaining and labor peace successful. 

Just recently, the U.S. Supreme Court heard a challenge to what are called ‘agency fee arrangements’—the small amount employees in a unionized position have deducted to cover the cost of collective bargaining and the associated benefits. The case is called Janus v. AFSCME.

These deductions are an important part of ‘agency shop’ arrangements: collective bargaining results in important gains for workers, but it’s not inexpensive or easy. It requires collective resources. 

I signed a brief on behalf of my client, Governor Steve Bullock, urging the Supreme Court to reject the challenge to agency fees. 

We told the Supreme Court not to overturn decades of successful practice. Montana had a unique story to tell the Court: our early history of labor unrest gave way to peaceful labor relations—something we cannot take for granted—in part due to the power and effectiveness of ‘agency fee’ arrangements.

Despite this history and the need to defend Montana’s labor peace and current laws, the Montana Attorney General sat the case out. 

Unfortunately, the activist forces that brought the case won. The Supreme Court, in a disastrous decision, held that the FIRST AMENDMENT—of all provisions—allowed for freeloading and prevented mandatory agency fees.

The Janus decision was bad for public sector unions on its face. But unions across the country, including in Montana, have been active in reinvigorating their members, and maintaining and growing member rolls.

The defeat before a conservative Supreme Court was disheartening, but the response by unions in Montana is inspiring. 

It also highlights just how important it is to have an Attorney General who isn’t just a friend to labor through words or at election time. It’s important to have an ally who’s willing to go to court—to take it all the way and actually do the hard work themselves—to protect the labor peace that our predecessors in Montana worked so hard to secure. 

That means looking down the road, seeing anti-union activism and its stealth tactics for what they are, and taking on tough cases where it’s all on the line. 

That’s why I’m running for Attorney General. I know this fight. And it’s time for our Attorney General to get in this fight and work for us. 

Tomorrow, Part 3: A recent federal decision that lets employers tell workers ‘the law doesn’t protect you.’

Thank you for reading and have a fun and safe Labor Day weekend. 

-Raph Graybill