HOOKSETT– Glenn Brackett, President of the New Hampshire AFL-CIO issued the following statement regarding the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold four decades of precedent that have protected our public employees:

 “The Supreme Court handed working men and women a major victory yesterday,” said Brackett. “Here in New Hampshire, this ruling protects more than 80,000 public employees. The Court’s decision represents a significant blow to the wealthy special interest that seek to control our democracy and undermine the rights of working families in the Granite State. Workers in New Hampshire and across America should take notice of the fact that the same wealthy corporate interests that helped fuel the attacks on workers in Friedrichs are also trying to prevent President Obama from fulfilling his Constitutional duty to fill a vacancy on the Supreme Court. That is why I am calling on Senator Ayotte to do her job, and demand a full public hearing and an up or down vote in the Senate on Judge Garland’s nomination.”

The plaintiffs in the Friedrichs case sought to destroy public sector unions by forcing them to give free services, such as contract negotiation, to public employees who choose not to join a union. Yesterday’s decision upheld decades of precedent, established in the 1977 case of Abood v. Detroit Board of Education, that prevents free-riding by non-union public employees who benefit from union bargaining efforts. This decision does not in any way alter the requirement that all contributions to political action committees or union political activities must be made voluntarily.

“Yesterday’s decision should make it very clear how important the Supreme Court is to our democracy. We have an obligation to let our Senators, in every state, know that we will not stand for political games when it comes to the Supreme Court. Senator Ayotte should allow President Obama’s nominee to have a timely and fair hearing. The Granite State elected Senator Ayotte to represent our best interests, and it would be in her best interest, to listen to her constituents, and do her job.”