The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear Janus v. American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, Council 31 this fall. This case centers on the ability of public sector unions to collect so-called “fair-share fees.” These fees are the equivalent of dues charged for services unions provide regardless of membership status to those workers who are not members. Fair share fees were have been collected since the Abood case in 1977 found them constitutional. Ending this practice would financially hurt the unions and further weaken them.
Janus is a Racist Attack
According to the Atlantic Black Star (9/27), the Janus is the latest effort of the States Policy Network (SPN) and the American Legislative and Exchange Council (ALEC) to destroy public sector unions. This effort reflects differences within the ruling class about how to keep workers from fighting back. The main wing of the U.S. ruling class is more willing to tolerate union leaders who support the capitalist system and lead workers away from class struggle and deliver them into the waiting arms of the Democratic Party. The Koch brothers, who fund SPN and ALEC, prefer to destroy the unions altogether.
In 2016 7.1 million government workers were members of unions. That is a little more than 34 percent of all government workers. Since the public sector is the largest employer of Black and historically more likely to join unions than any other racial group, says Jackson, such anti-union campaigns have particular implications for Black workers.
According to Dr Steven C Pitts, UC Berkeley, on average, Black union members earn 16.4 percent higher wages than non-union members and are more likely to have employer-provided health insurance (17 percent) and an employer sponsored retirement plan (18 percent).
Janus v. AFSCME also reflects the pressures US imperialism is facing internationally. To improve their economic competitiveness the rate of exploitation of the working class must be increased.  
Unions Decline Fueled by Anti-communism
The Janus case attacks public sector unions which is the main place where workers are unionized today. In the mid 1950s, 35 percent of all U.S. workers were members of unions. Almost all of these worked in the private sector.
Today, only 11.9 percent of U.S. workers are members of unions. Of this number 6.9 percent are private sector workers while 36.2 percent work in the public sector. A main factor in the decline in unionization was the Taft Hartley Law of 1947. This law outlawed militant activities of unions and made it illegal for Communists to hold union office.

Progressive Labor Party, a revolutionary communist party cannot be bound by the bosses’ laws. We understand that capitalism and its laws oppress us. After members of the U.S. Communist Party were kicked out (sometimes willingly) from union leadership, adherence to other Taft-Hartley restrictions limited fightback. PL’ers seek to bring communist ideas into the workers struggles. This would mean that court cases like Janus would be unable to defeat us. PL’ers fight like hell in the class struggle but understand that to get rid of the capitalist system of class oppression we must build for communist revolution.