Nonprofit or Government? Brooklyn Public Library's Union Dues Case Tests Janus Ruling

A Brooklyn Public Library employee says he's lost roughly $1,000 in forced union dues since resigning last year — testing whether a "private" nonprofit that's government-funded and government-controlled must follow the Supreme Court's Janus ruling. The background: The 2018 Janus v. AFSCME Supreme Court ruling barred government employers from forcing public employees to pay union dues or fees as a condition of employment, on First Amendment grounds. It doesn't apply to private employers in non-right-to-work states like New York, where private companies can still require union payments. The twist: The Brooklyn Public Library calls itself a private nonprofit, but Liberty Justice Center attorney Jeffrey Schwab says its board is primarily controlled by government officials, it's mostly government-funded, and it performs government functions (including hosting voting). His client, a library employee who resigned from the union last year, is still being forced to pay dues and has lost about $1,000 in take-home pay as a result. The core legal question: Whether the library is "substantially government-controlled" enough to count as a public employer under the Constitution — since the First Amendment only restricts government action, not private conduct. Schwab says this single question will decide roughly 98% of the case. A related case: Liberty Justice Center also represents two New York City public defenders technically employed by a nonprofit but who exclusively perform an "exclusive government function." That case rests on a different legal theory than the library case but raises the same underlying issue. What's next: Schwab expects the union to fight the case, predicting it will likely reach the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, with a chance the Supreme Court could eventually take it up to clarify government-action doctrine. Should nonprofits that are heavily government-funded and government-controlled be treated as public employers under Janus? Leave your thoughts in the comments. #UnionDues #FirstAmendment #JanusRuling #CenterSquare #TheStates