Five Educators Sue California Teachers’ Union For Mandatory Dues Collection

Five educators sued the California Teachers Association Monday for mandatory collection of dues.

The teachers are represented by San Francisco lawyer Harmeet Dhillon and conservative think tank Freedom Foundation in Washington state, The Associated Press reported.

“These dues are a negative financial impact to a lot of teachers who live in the Bay Area where there is a high cost of living,” Fremont Unified School District teacher and plaintiff Bethany Mendez said, according to the AP.

Mendez reportedly pays $1,500 a year in union dues.

“This is just another lawsuit from the Freedom Foundation to continue the attack on public education and public employees,” CTA spokeswoman Claudia Briggs said in a statement.

The Supreme Court ruled in June 2018 that public sector employees cannot be forced to pay labor union dues unless they sign up to be part of the labor organization.

Oakland, California, teachers were on strike in February to protest what they believed to be unlivable wages.

Bay Area and Silicon Valley cities in California struggle to keep up with increasing living costs due to tech companies. The median monthly rent price in Oakland is a little more than $3,000 and the median housing value price is $735,000. San Francisco’s median rent price is $$4,495 while the median prices homes are sold are above $1 million.

CTA did not immediately respond to The Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.