(The Center Square) – A Washington state labor board is investigating a complaint filed by an employee with the city of Everett regarding dues paid to the local union after that employee attempted to opt out.
While the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, representing the employee, claims the incident highlights ongoing problems with the process by which public workers can opt out of paying union dues, the local union and the city of Everett argue it was an administrative mistake that has since been resolved.
In 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in its Janus decision that forcing public sector employees to pay dues to the union represented a violation of their First Amendment rights. In response, states such as Washington enacted new laws regarding the process by which public workers can opt out.
Under Washington’s process, an employee must notify both the union and their employee of their intent to resign membership and cease deducting dues from their paycheck. The notification typically must occur within 15-day window periods.
The unfair labor contract complaint filed by Xenia Davidsen with the state’s Public Employment Relations Commission alleges that several years after being hired by the city of Everett, Davidsen notified both the city and AFSCME Council 2 that she no longer wished to have union dues deducted from her paycheck during the timeframe stipulated. However, the complaint alleges that dues continued to be deducted.
When The Center Square reached out to the city of Everett for comment, Communications Manager & Public Information Officer Simone Tarver wrote that “in the situation you made reference to, there was a miscommunication related to the cessation of the dues and as soon as we were made of aware of this in February 2025, steps were taken to issue retroactive payments to the impacted individual for all dues owed since their formal withdrawal from the union.”
A similar statement was made by Council 2 President Michael Rainey, who told The Center Square “this situation with this employee was an administrative oversight” and that the employee had been reimbursed. He also noted that an initial complaint filed regarding the matter had been dismissed by PERC.
Tarver also wrote that “a significant portion of City of Everett employees are represented by labor organizations. These organizations negotiate with the City on labor agreements on behalf of their members. Once agreements are reached, the City is bound to comply with them. Legally, the City is prevented from unilaterally stopping union dues, and so the City must continue to deduct and remit Union dues and fees to the Union until such time as the Union notifies the City that the dues authorization has been properly terminated.”
National Right to Work Foundation Vice President Patrick Semmens says the state’s opt-out process is fraught with ambiguity over who is responsible for ceasing deductions due to the involvement of both the employer and the union.
“It’s a system designed to basically avoid any accountability,” he said. “The union hides behind government payroll processor, the government hides behind the union. It’s pretty outrageous when you think about it on those terms. This is how they’re designed to avoid accountability. The government says, ‘We’re just doing what they say.’”
