The state's chief federal judge refused Wednesday to stop the state of Minnesota from negotiating a contract with newly unionized home health care workers, saying it was unlikely union opponents will win their case in court.
In his 25-page ruling, District Judge Michael Davis denied a request for an expedited injunction sought by the National Right to Work Foundation. The injunction, he said, would delay implementation of a state law that was passed by the Legislature "after full debate" and would constitute "an unwarranted intrusion" by the federal government and judiciary into the state's affairs.
The Service Employees International Union (SEIU) won an election on Aug. 26 to represent the state's 27,000 home health care workers, the largest successful union campaign in Minnesota since passage of the federal Wagner Act in 1935. Some 5,800 workers voted, and 60 percent opted to join the union.
Attorneys for the Right to Work Foundation, an anti-union organization headquartered in Virginia, sought the injunction to prevent the state from negotiating a contract with the SEIU. The foundation maintains that the First Amendment rights of home care workers who oppose the union are being violated.
A member of the SEIU's leadership team applauded Davis' ruling Wednesday.
"I am really excited because he ruled in our favor and that means we can go ahead and bargain," said Darlene Gray, a 25-year-old home health care worker from Apple Valley.
The Right to Work Foundation is exploring its options, which include asking the Eighth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to reverse Davis' decision.
"To have the state impose a state-selected representative, the SEIU, on home care providers who don't voluntarily support the union is a clear violation of Minnesota home care providers' freedom of association," said Patrick Semmens, vice president of the foundation.