Union Dues Soon to Disappear From Fla. Checks

Florida’s Senate has joined the House in voting to ban the state and its localities from automatically deducting pubic workers’ union dues from their paychecks, the Post on Politics blog of the Palm Beach Post reports. The bill awaits a signature from Republican Gov. Rick Scott, who supports the measure.

Labor leaders criticized the "paycheck protection" bill as a union-busting measure while supporters said it just means unions will have to set up their own apparatus for collecting dues.

“Government should not be the tax collector for unions,” said GOP state Sen. John Thrasher, who sponsored the bill.

Three Republican senators voted with Democrats to preserve the automatic deductions, but the measure still passed 11-9. The House voted 73-40 along party lines last month to end the deductions.