The UWUA Objection Plan Year July 1, 2019 — June 30, 2020
1- Nonmembers’ Right to Object.
Any employee who is not a member of the UWUA, and who pays fees to the UWUA and/or a Local Union pursuant to a collectively bargained union-security provision, will have the right to object to expenditures paid for activities, which are not reasonably related to collective bargaining. Such activities are referred to as “non-germane.” The fees paid by a non-member employee who files an objection under these procedures will be based only on expenditures for activities that are related to collective bargaining.
2- Procedure for Filing Objections.
Objections must be made by the individual objectors, in writing, addressed to the National Secretary-Treasurer, UWUA, 1300 L St. NW., Suite 1200, Washington, DC 20005. Simple objections must be made annually and are effective for a single Plan Year (July 1 to June 30). Objections must include the nonmember’s name and address and Local Union number. An objection which expressly provides that it is continuing will be honored. All other objections will be considered simple objections which must be renewed annually.
3- Reduction in Dues or Fees.
The fees paid to both the UWUA and its Local Unions by nonmember employees who file objections will be reduced for a 12-month period. Once a written objection is received by the National Office, the National Secretary-Treasurer will notify the relevant local to reduce the fees for the objecting member. Dues or fees paid by nonmember employees are comprised of the per capita fees paid to the UWUA and fees retained by the Local Union.
For the Plan Year July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020, 86.44% of the total annual per capita fees and Local Union fees are chargeable to objecting nonmembers The applicable nongermane percentage of 13.56% was determined by analyzing the UWUA’s expenditures for the recently completed fiscal year.
4- Calculation of Reduction in Per Capita and Local Union Dues and Fees.
The National Secretary-Treasurer calculates the reduction in the UWUA’s per capita fees and in Local Union fees to which objectors will be entitled by determining the UWUA’s total operating expenditures during the preceding fiscal year, based on financial statements prepared by a third party auditor, and the total expenditures made for activities that are “germane” and therefore chargeable to objecting nonmember employees. The National Secretary-Treasurer then calculates the ratio of germane expenditures to total expenditures. All objectors shall receive, the financial report explaining the calculations for the percentage reduction as well as the list of germane and non-germane expenditures.
5- Appeal to Impartial Arbitrator.
A nonmember employee who files an objection and who disagrees with the UWUA’s determination of the reduction in per capita fees and Local Union fees in the belief that it does not accurately reflect expenditures on germane and non-germane activities may challenge the UWUA’s determination by appealing to an impartial arbitrator.
a.An objector who wishes to appeal to the impartial arbitrator must explicitly request, within thirty (30) days of receipt confirmation of the reduction in fees and financial report, that he or she is seeking arbitration. The words “ARBITRATION REQUESTED” must appear on the face of the appeal.
b.The impartial arbitrator will be appointed by the American Arbitration Association (AAA), through its Rules for Impartial Determination of Union fees.
c. All appeals will be conducted in accordance with the Rules of the AAA. The UWUA will bear the burden of justifying its calculations.
d. The cost of the arbitrator’s services and the proceedings will be borne by the UWUA and the Local Union. Individually incurred costs (e.g. travel expenses, lost wages, legal expenses, witness fees, transcript copy costs, etc.) will be borne by the party incurring them.
e. While the appeal is pending, the National Secretary-Treasurer will hold, in an interest-bearing escrow account, a portion of the fees paid by appealing objectors that is sufficient to ensure that any portion of the fees that is reasonably in dispute will not be used during the appeal. If the impartial arbitrator determines that the appealing objectors are entitled to a greater reduction in their fees than that calculated by the UWUA, checks will be issued for the balance of the reduction in fees, plus interest.
f.The decision of the impartial arbitrator will be final and binding.