Using Technology to Counter the Assault on Unions
The campaign to de-fang unions and thence the power of their workers continues throughout various states and lamentably with undeniable success. One of the most powerful weapons that the enemies of our unions have at their disposal is the possibility to remove the right of unions to collect their dues by “check off” from the employers of their members. This is the process whereby the union members’ dues are deducted from their payroll and the money remitted directly to the union in question. Members’ dues are the financial lifeblood of any union so the ability to disrupt that flow of cash can inflict serious financial damage, crippling the ability of the union to operate. This tool has been used successfully in several states (for state workers) that have gone “right to work” in recent years thanks to changes in the political leadership at the state level.
Fortunately there are solutions that current technology offers for meeting this challenge. Huge numbers of people in today’s society (if not the majority) have at one time or another paid for products or services online. Whether it is their utility bill, an item on eBay or a product from Amazon, online payments have become ubiquitous and an accepted “norm”…. so why not your union’s dues? At JayStar we started tackling this issue some years ago and after a lengthy development process and a partnership with a leading bank we launched an online dues payment system (www.paymyuniondues.com). This allows any union’s members to pay their dues online by credit card or by ACH. It also provides for payment details to be downloaded and in most instances imported into the union’s member ship and dues system. The removal of “check-off” then becomes just another irritation that can be overcome.
There is no doubt that this product has attracted much attention and I’m sure we will see more and more customers for it as the anti-union assault gathers steam. That’s encouraging but it’s also fair to say that there is still much “wishful thinking” amongst certain unions that somehow this is an aberration that will go away and who don’t even have a “plan B” ready when it may happen to them.
This issue is NOT going away and there is technology available to mitigate the effects of this strategy should it happen to your union. Be pro-active and investigate your options NOW rather than scramble for a solution after it happens.
Contact us to learn more about PayMyUnionDues.
Posted in: Dues Software, Labor Unions, LM-2
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