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Judge Overturns Gov. Rauner's Order Restricting Union Dues

BELLEVILLE, Ill. (AP) — A judge has issued an order requiring Illinois government agencies to immediately reinstate mandatory union dues for nonmembers.

Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner last month issued an executive order ending the dues, which nonmembers must pay to cover the cost of non-political union activities that benefit all employees.

Friday's order by St. Clair County Associate Judge Christopher Kolker requires the Rauner administration to "remit fair share fees ... pending the resolution of the case" and to transmit "the correct payroll information" regarding gross pay for affected employees to Illinois' comptroller. The order is based on an agreement between the administration and unions.

Unions have filed a lawsuit seeking to permanently overturn Rauner's order.

Illinois AFL-CIO president Michael T. Carrigan says he's pleased fair-share agreements will be honored while the lawsuit proceeds.

Rauner's administration says it has agreed to allow government agencies to reinstate mandatory fair share fees for non-union members in return for union agreement to a faster timeline for resolving their dispute over the payments.

The Rauner administration says the deal to reinstate the fees pending a resolution "will speed up the case and remove legal obstacles to resolving the underlying First Amendment issues as efficiently as possible."

In a statement, the administration adds that it's confident it will ultimately win and will assist nonmembers in recovering the fees.

(TM and © Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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