The U.S. Labor Relations System after Janus v. AFSCME: an Early Assessment

Abstract

In 2018, anti-union organizations accomplished one of their top goals by convincing the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn 40 years of precedent and declare union security clauses in the public sector unconstitutional. Many predicted such a decision would lead to the end of public sector unions, but thus far that has not occurred. Nor has the labor relations system, of which these fees were an integral part, crumbled. This article looks at what has happened in the two years since the decision came down, including the continuing efforts to deprive unions of membership and funding, and the union responses. The article also looks at other recent trends in labor relations – a significant uptick in the number of strikes and the growth of social movement unionism. The trends provide hints that the country may be on the cusp of a transformative moment in labor relations. Significant questions remain, however, about what the future will bring.