Florida judge allows blocking of automatic union dues deduction starting Saturday

 With a looming implementation date of Saturday, July 1st, Leon County circuit judge J. Lee Marsh denied a plea on Tuesday to prevent a portion of the law that bars government workers from having union fees automatically deducted from their wages.

The decision arrived after three unions and three union members from South Florida sought a temporary injunction against the imminent changes. This decision follows a similar ruling on Monday where a federal judge refused a similar request made by teachers unions.

The law in question, SB 256, was signed into effect by Governor Ron DeSantis last month, sparking the legal challenges. The law places a raft of new constraints on public employee unions. Supporters of the bill argue that the law will lead to increased transparency, while critics decry it as a politically-charged move aimed at weakening unions.

One of the most contentious elements of the law puts an end to the long-standing practice of automatically deducting union dues from employees’ salaries. The lawsuit filed in Leon County saw legal representatives for unions from cities such as Miami Beach, North Miami Beach, Deerfield Beach, Riviera Beach, and West Palm Beach argue that the law breaches collective bargaining rights and will pose a financial threat to unions.