TRENTON, N.J.—With the Supreme Court expected to rule that public-sector workers don’t have to pay
dues to the unions that represent them, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy on May 18 signed a bill expanding the rights of unions on public worksites and penalizing governments that discourage them. The Workplace Democracy Enhancement Act, Murphy said in a statement, “promotes labor stability in the public sector” by ensuring that unions “are able to carry out their statutory duties by having access to, and being able to communicate with, the employees they represent.” The bill lets union representatives meet with members during breaks, with newly hired employees, and during work hours to investigate grievances. It also makes most part-time workers eligible for union membership, and requires public employers to give unions contact information for all employees in the bargaining unit and let the union use their work email to send messages to members. If a public employer is proven to have tried to get employees to quit the union or interfered with an organizing campaign, it will have to reimburse the union for lost dues. The state currently has about 344,000 public union members. Read more
