Eaton employee compels union leaders to withdraw illegal fee threats

Robert Jacobs, an employee at Eaton Corporation's Troy, Illinois facility, successfully compelled the International Association of Machinists (IAM) union officials to retract threats related to illegal fees following his decision to terminate his union membership. Jacobs challenged the union's demands by filing federal charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) in January, aided by attorneys from the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation.

In states such as Illinois and Missouri, where Right to Work protections are absent for private sector workers, unions can enforce contracts requiring employees in unionized workplaces to pay a portion of dues. However, under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), workers have the right to abstain from formal union membership without facing retaliatory fees or fines.

Jacobs and several colleagues resigned their IAM memberships after disagreeing with a strike order in October 2024. Subsequently, IAM officials threatened them with termination unless they paid a $306 "reinstatement fee" by January 2025. Under pressure from federal charges and an NLRB investigation, IAM officials rescinded these threats and attributed the situation to an error by Eaton’s Human Resources department.