Legal Definitions - maintenance of membership

Maintenance of Membership refers to a specific type of agreement between an employer and a labor union that defines the conditions for union membership among employees.

Under a maintenance of membership clause, employees are not required to join the union as a condition of their employment. However, if an employee voluntarily chooses to become a union member, or if they are already a member when the collective bargaining agreement takes effect, they are generally obligated to maintain their union membership for the duration of that agreement. The agreement typically includes a brief "escape period" or "window" during which existing members can resign their membership without penalty. If this window is missed, or if an employee joins the union after this period, they must remain a member until the agreement expires.

Here are some examples to illustrate this concept:

• Manufacturing Plant: Imagine a large automotive parts factory where employees have a union. The collective bargaining agreement between the factory management and the union includes a maintenance of membership clause. New hires are informed that joining the union is optional. However, if a new employee decides to join the union, they are then committed to maintaining their membership for the entire three-year term of the current contract. Similarly, existing union members were given a specific 15-day period at the start of the contract to resign if they wished. If they did not resign during that precise window, they are obligated to remain union members until the contract concludes or the next designated escape period, whichever comes first.

  This illustrates how employees are not forced to join, but once they opt in (or are already in and miss the escape window), they must maintain their membership for the contract's duration.

• Public School District: Consider a school district where teachers are represented by a teachers' union, and their contract contains a maintenance of membership provision. When the new four-year contract was ratified, all teachers who were already union members were given a two-week period to resign their membership if they chose. Any teacher who did not resign during that specific two-week window, or any teacher who decided to join the union *after* that window closed, is now required to maintain their union membership for the entire four-year term of the agreement. They cannot simply decide to leave the union mid-contract outside of any specified escape period.

  This demonstrates that while initial membership is voluntary, the clause binds members for the contract's term once they've committed or missed their chance to opt out.

• Healthcare Facility: A large hospital has a union representing its nursing staff, and their agreement includes a maintenance of membership clause. Nurses are free to decide whether or not to join the union. However, if a nurse chooses to become a member, they are then committed to maintaining that membership for the two-year duration of the current collective bargaining agreement. For example, if a nurse joins the union six months into the contract, they must remain a member for the remaining 18 months. The agreement also specifies a short "opt-out" period at the beginning of each contract term for existing members to resign, but outside of that window, membership is maintained.

  This example highlights the voluntary nature of joining, but the subsequent obligation to maintain membership for the contract's term, with only specific windows for resignation.