Document ID: ./input/supremecourt_opinions/opinions/17pdf/16-1466_2b3j.pdf
Page Number: 20

Cite as:  585 U. S. ____ (2018) 

15 

Opinion of the Court 

this so? 

Even  without  agency  fees,  designation  as  the  exclusive 
representative  confers  many  benefits.    As  noted,  that 
status  gives  the  union  a  privileged  place  in  negotiations 
over  wages,  benefits,  and  working  conditions. 
  See 
§315/6(c).  Not only is the union given the exclusive right 
to speak for all the employees in collective bargaining, but 
the  employer  is  required  by  state  law  to  listen  to  and  to
bargain in good faith with only that union.  §315/7.  Des­
ignation  as  exclusive  representative  thus  “results  in  a 
tremendous increase in the power” of the union.  American 
Communications  Assn.  v.  Douds,  339  U. S.  382,  401 
(1950).

In addition, a union designated as exclusive representa­
tive  is  often  granted  special  privileges,  such  as  obtaining 
information  about  employees,  see  §315/6(c),  and  having 
dues  and  fees  deducted  directly  from  employee  wages, 
§§315/6(e)–(f ).  The  collective-bargaining  agreement  in 
this  case  guarantees  a  long  list  of  additional  privileges. 
See App. 138–143.

These  benefits  greatly  outweigh  any  extra  burden  im­
posed  by  the  duty  of  providing  fair  representation  for 
nonmembers.  What  this duty entails, in simple terms, is
an  obligation  not  to  “act  solely  in  the  interests  of  [the
union’s]  own  members.”    Brief  for  State  Respondents  41; 
see  Cintron  v.  AFSCME,  Council  31,  No.  S–CB–16–032, 
p. 1,  34  PERI  ¶105  (ILRB  Dec.  13,  2017)  (union  may  not 
intentionally direct “animosity” toward nonmembers based 
on  their  “dissident  union  practices”);  accord,  14  Penn 
Plaza  LLC  v.  Pyett,  556  U. S.  247,  271  (2009);  Vaca  v. 
Sipes, 386 U. S. 171, 177 (1967). 

What does this mean when it comes to the negotiation of 
a  contract?    The  union  may  not  negotiate  a  collective-
bargaining  agreement  that  discriminates  against  non­

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the State of Minnesota Court System as Amici Curiae 9–17.