Yes, I actually didn't think that we'd allow firing criteria to be placed in our contract over something as trivial as paying dues. The company could probably care less is we have agency shop or not, so somebody had to insert this BS into our contract language. Suspend somebody's membership benefits & representation. Definitely. Add a penalty fee for not paying on time. Certainly! But FIRE SOMEBODY over dues....if you actually buy into that concept, you might actually be the real moron here.

Yes, I also didn't expect the all of the D-bag non-members would get such a free pass on their dues. I thought that the phrase "everybody pays" meant that "everybody would pay"! FYI - We didn't let just 30 guys slide through in 2006 - I stared at the list enought times in disgust to know that much!

Lastly, I never said to make it the number one priority for the negotiating committee to get rid of Section 29. It just needs to be fixed; that's my opinion.