NEA Loses “Pay Dues or Change Religion” Case
For lifelong Catholic Carol Katter, refusing to pay dues to the teacher’s union that financially supports abortion agendas was a moral and religious decision. When membership became mandatory, she attempted to donate her dues to a charity rather than the Ohio Education Association, a chapter of the Nation Education Association (NEA). This option is allowed by the chapter’s bylaws for Seventh-Day Adventists and Mennonite churches because of their history of objection to union membership. However, when the Catholic teacher asked for the same religious consideration, she was told she had to either change religions or pay her dues.
Katter took her case to court, and the ruling by the federal district court was unequivocably in favor of Katter. “Any public employee who was a member of a “bona fide religion or religious body which has historically held conscientious objections to joining or financially supporting an employee organization … shall not be required to join or financially support any employee organization.” (CNSNews.com)
Hopefully, this case will set an example for all employee organizations that even the unions are not exempt from religious rights.
Read a full accounting of the case.
christian news, education, religious rights, religion
June 28th, 2007 at 2:19 pm
I’m so glad that the courts found in her favor. I’ve had to make the tough decision to leave a service organization in the past because of a similar issue, but I’ve never really had to put my beliefs on the line like she did for the sake of a job. Good for her to stand by her beliefs when it obviously was going to cost her.