SACRAMENTO - A small California union has big plans to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars a year during the remainder of President Donald Trump’s term to help it support political candidates opposed to labor policies coming out of the White House.

The California Association of Psychiatric Technicians, which represents about 6,200 state mental health workers, is levying a monthly $6.50 charge to fund extra political activities from Jan. 1, 2018 until Dec. 31, 2020.

Its leaders voted to raise the political action fee because they worry that the Trump administration and its allies will advance right-to-work laws across the country, undercutting union membership and revenue.

Right-to-work laws prevent unions from charging so-called “fair share fees” to cover the non-political costs of representing workers who don’t want to belong to a labor group.

The union cited an “ever-present anti-union, anti-worker movement that is seeking to strip away our rights as workers by weakening their unions” when it announced the new fee, the Sacramento Bee reported.

Story Date: October 21, 2017