Homecare Workers Freed from Big Labor’s Greed

Homecare workers in three states have finally been liberated from something they should never have experienced in the first place: paying dues to government unions with which they did not want to be associated.

Thanks to Harris v. Quinn, suits filed on behalf of homecare workers in Minnesota, Massachusetts, and Illinois by attorneys at the National Right to Work Foundation have led to the SEIU notifying homecare workers that they will no longer require payment for unwanted representation.

The SEIU’s arguments for forcing homecare workers to pay dues was that, since homecare workers receive state subsidies for patient care, they are state employees and can be unionized. Not only is that argument weak, but it doesn’t account for the fact that many homecare workers are self-employed and adamantly resist unionization.

I’m confident that homecare workers are breathing a sigh of relief. Before the Supreme Court struck down unionization of the workers as illegal, unions promised homecare workers healthcare benefits, retirement benefits, and improved working conditions – all of which turned out to be empty promises.

The only thing unions like the SEIU would have done for homecare workers would have been to take money that would have been used for patient care to pay for their imaginary services.

Harris v. Quinn was a welcome break for the embattled homecare workers and the National Right to Work Foundation deserves praise for pressing union bosses into releasing the rest of these workers. Their hard work is hitting SEIU’s wallet and it serves the union right for trying to rip off people who make a living taking care of those who can’t take care of themselves.