TY - JOUR AU - Sophia Carter, PY - 2021/08/24 Y2 - 2024/03/28 TI - Janus v. AFSCME, Council 31: An Unprecedented Blow to Public Sector Unions? JF - Bellarmine Law Society Review JA - BLSR VL - 11 IS - 2 SE - Articles DO - UR - https://ejournals.bc.edu/index.php/blsr/article/view/13435 SP - AB - <p>In June of 2018, the Supreme Court of the United States handed down a shocking opinion that sent waves through labor law and the public sector. After forty-one years of state and local labor law policy being structured around the precedent set by <em>Abood vs. Detroit Board of Education </em>(c. 1977), the Supreme Court overturned the right of public sector unions to enter into agency-shop agreements, which otherwise necessitates the payment of fees to the union regardless of union membership. In this article, I will first briefly discuss the facts of <em>Janus</em>, both parties’ contentions, and the reasoning behind the opinions of both the conservative majority and the liberal minority. I will then argue that <em>Janus</em> was incorrectly decided under the well-established doctrine of <em>stare decisis</em> and that the practical implications of the majority’s decision run counter to the spirit of public sector labor rights.</p> ER -