June 21, 2012 12:19PM # Major Victory for Workers’ Rights By [Ilya Shapiro](https://www.cato.org/people/ilya-shapiro) --- SHARE Today’s Supreme Court decision in *[Knox v. SEIU](http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/11pdf/10-1121c4d6.pdf)* is a major victory for individual liberties and workers’ right not to be coerced by government or unions. Those workers who choose not to join unions should not be forced to fund the unions’ political activities. The Court’s decision for the worker to opt-in to paycheck deductions for political activities rather than opt-out of these payments restores the proper protection for the individual’s freedom of speech and conscience. Justice Alito wrote for the majority, “Courts do not presume acquiescence in the loss of fundamental rights.” ##### Related Tags [Constitutional Law](https://www.cato.org/constitutional-law), [Regulation](https://www.cato.org/regulatory-studies), [Robert A. Levy Center for Constitutional Studies](https://www.cato.org/robert-levy-center-constitutional-studies) [![Creative Commons License](/build/cato_2020/images/creative-commons.svg)](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/) This work is licensed under a [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/).