VIDEO: Who is Really Behind the Freedom Foundation?
If someone sends you a fake check in the mail telling you it’s free money, you’d be right not to trust it. The so-called Freedom Foundation does just that to try to trick workers into leaving their union – targeting public-sector workers like myself in higher education, healthcare, and other important industries. So what is the Freedom Foundation and who is behind this scheme to weaken unions?
The Freedom Foundation is a think tank that boldly claims to be “fighting for workers rights” – but really they are a right-wing pro-corporate organization that has been attacking public sector unions and government services for decades. Just look who’s really behind their funding – billionaires like the Koch brothers, the Mellon Family, and the DeVos family – so tell me how much they are really here for workers rights?
In 2018, the Janus decision by the Supreme Court made open shop the law of the land for public sector workers – meaning union membership became opt-in for all public sector unionized workers. This attack was meant to undercut union membership. Public sector unions still have far higher membership numbers than the private sector, so organizations like the Freedom Foundation and the National Right to Work Foundation have long desired to attack this stronghold of union membership
After Janus was handed down, the Freedom Foundation began their deceptive campaign to push public sector union members to leave their union. They started to send mailers to unionized public employees. The mailers included what looked a lot like a check and instructions for how they could “cash” it – which meant withdrawing their union membership and stopping to pay dues.
But those dues provide the resources for our unions to represent us when employers disrespect our rights, to negotiate for improvements in our contract, and to organize more of our coworkers. Corporations and billionaires have endless money, and dues are an important part of how we build our power as workers to effectively fight the boss.
This campaign may sound ridiculous, but their deception has done a lot of damage already. The Freedom Foundation claims their mailers have resulted in 192,000 people leaving their union… which can have serious consequences for all public sector workers.
Recently, they sent another round of their fake checks to members of UAW local 4811, my union, the union of 48,000 academic workers across the UC system. This time, they added a twist – attacking my union’s democratic stance in solidarity with Palestine. Clearly, unionized workers wielding our power against the war machine did not sit well with these billionaires.
That’s why they’re resorting to this ridiculous misinformation campaign. What the billionaires don’t want you to know is that when workers opt-out of their union, they are really just hurting themselves and their coworkers.
It’s been proven time and time again that higher union membership rates result in better pay, benefits, and working conditions. Studies have shown that states with private sector right-to-work laws in general have lower wages and higher workplace mortality rates. This is true even outside of unionized workplaces and that’s because unions empower workers to fight for better conditions and benefits, and their fight lifts the standards across their industries and localities.
Why are they doing this then? Public approval of unions is at its highest level since 1965 and the public confidence in unions has increased while confidence in other institutions has decreased. This is a threat to billionaires like the Koch Brothers, who have a personal interest in suppressing our unions so they can line their own pockets.
So if you get a mailer from the Freedom Foundation promising you free money, throw that right where it belongs, and stand strong with your union.