By SUZANNE DOWNING
April 5, 2026 – It has been nearly eight years since the US Supreme Court handed down its landmark ruling in Janus v. AFSCME, a decision that fundamentally reshaped public-sector union membership across the country by giving government employees the right to opt out of union membership and dues.
According to the Freedom Foundation, more than 266,000 public employees nationwide have exercised that right since the 2018 decision. In Alaska, 899 public workers have opted out — a relatively small raw number, but significant when measured against the state’s population and government workforce. The figure is higher than opt-out totals reported in some larger states, including Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah.
Washington AFSCME dues-paying membership dropped from 95.8% in mid-2018 to 64.7% by late 2021, about a 35% non-paying, even as the number of represented employees grew.
Oregon SEIU saw dues-paying membership fall to 62.6% by late 2021 from 100% pre-Janus.
California saw dues-paying membership rates decline from ~73% in 2018 to 55% by 2025 in some data from the State Controller’s Office, though overall public-sector figures vary and some unions saw smaller drops.
The numbers drop across the country even as employees ain the University of Alaska system prepare for a newly formed staff union, approved by workers last week. While the vote creates an exclusive bargaining unit for eligible employees, the Janus decision means individual workers cannot be required to join the union or pay dues as a condition of employment.
That distinction is still misunderstood by many. The union becomes the exclusive representative for wages, hours, and working conditions, but membership and financial support remain voluntary.
For decades prior to Janus, many public employees across the country were required to pay “agency fees” to unions even if they declined membership. The Supreme Court ruled that practice violated the First Amendment.
As the court summarized: “The First Amendment is violated when money is taken from nonconsenting employees for a public-sector union; employees must choose to support the union before anything is taken from them.”
Public employers cannot deduct union dues unless an employee affirmatively consents.
The Freedom Foundation has made helping workers understand that option a central part of its mission. The organization argues the decision empowers employees by putting dues money back in workers’ pockets and reducing the political influence of public-sector unions.
Supporters of unions, meanwhile, have complained that the ruling weakens collective bargaining by allowing workers to benefit from representation without paying for it, a debate that has continued even since the ruling was decided.
