REQUIRED LEGAL NOTICE

Pursuant to instructions of the National Labor Relations Board, notice is herby given to all persons employed under this local union’s collective bargaining agreements of the following:

You are currently covered by a labor agreement with a union security clause which when interpreted in accord with applicable law requires that within a specified number of days after being hired you become and remain a member of this local or begin paying a regular agency fee as non-members. Agency fee-payers do not have the right to vote in any union elections, vote on proposed contracts, attend union meetings or participate in programs lawfully provided to members only, such as travel programs, the UFCW Master Card, the UFCW Credit Union (which obtains discounts on recreation and various goods and services) and free representation in unemployment and other administrative hearings. Current members have the right to convert to agency fee-payer status by submitting a written resignation from the local. Such persons cannot re-enter the local without paying a new initiation fee. Pursuant to the Supreme Court holding in Communication Workers vs. Beck, agency fee-payers have the right to object to the inclusion in their initiation fee and dues of non-chargeable expenditures. Non-chargeable expenditures currently include but are not limited to organizing businesses which do not compete with UFCW 8-organized employers, advertising relating to non-chargeable items, per capita taxes or fees paid to other labor organizations to the extent spent on non-chargeable items. Union publications to the extent they report on non-chargeable activities; Expenses of litigation on issues not concerning this local’s bargaining units; Costs of union benefits not available to non-members; Costs attendant to political campaigns, charitable contributions, and costs of promoting, defeating or lobbying on legislation.

Chargeable expenditures include, but are not limited to those on collective bargaining. Contract administration grievance adjustment; organizing businesses which do compete with UFCW 8-organized employers; union business meetings, social activities, conventions, and union publications to the extent they deal with chargeable activities. Costs of administering the union, including rent, phones, insurance overhead, automobiles, and staff salaries and benefits, to the extent used or engaged in chargeable activities. Expenses of litigation incident to negotiating and administering the contract. Defending duty of fair representation claims, and other litigation concerning bargaining units or unit employees, per capita taxes or fees paid to other labor organizations to the extent they are spend on chargeable expenses applied by the local.

Non-member agency fee-payers have the right to have the amount of their service fee reduced to cover only chargeable items objections of being charged for non-chargeable items must be submitted in writing to the president of the local union at its main business address and must include your full name, home address, employer name, department, work location and home and work telephone numbers. Upon receipt of an objection, the local will reduce the objector’s fee by the percentage of non-chargeable expenses shown by our audited financial statement for the previous fiscal year. Upon request, the local will supply the objector with a breakdown of its expenditures for the preceding fiscal year. The reduced fee will be reviewed annually and adjusted if necessary.

Objectors have a right to challenge the International’s and/or local’s determination of chargeable and non-chargeable spending. The following challenge procedure is available:

(1) The challenger submits a challenge in writing which specifies the further reduction sought in the agency fee and supplies evidence upon which this challenge is based. Such a challenge should include the employee’s name, home address, job title department, employer, work location, and work and home telephone numbers, and be received by the president of the local within 30 days of the postmark date of the local’s letter providing the objector with a financial breakdown. The local will respond in writing to the challenge.

(2) If the local rejects the challenge, and the challenger is not satisfied, he or she may (a) submit the matter of the local’s executive board within 15 days on which the local’s letter rejecting the challenge was postmarked, and/or (b) submit the issue to final and binding arbitration by requesting arbitration in writing, which request should be submitted to the local president within 15 days of the date on which the local’s letter rejecting the challenge was postmarked, or the date the Executive Board rejected the challenge, whichever is later. The matter then will be submitted to arbitration before an impartial fact finder appointed by the American Arbitration Association (AAA). Challenges may be consolidated into a single hearing. The hearing will be conducted under AAA rules for impartial determination of union fees, and will be held at the local union’s headquarters within 120 days of the date the challenge is received by the local union office. The local will pay the arbitrator’s fee.

(3) If a written challenge is received which complies with the above, the local will place an amount equal to the challengers’ requested reduction in the fee into an interest-bearing account until a final decision has been rendered in the matter. Should the decision lower the percentage of chargeable expenditures, the appropriate portion of the escrowed fees, plus interest, will be refunded to the challenger. If the fact-finder approves the union’s calculations, the escrowed money and interest will revert to the local union.