English: United States Supreme Court building in Washington D.C., USA. Front facade. (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
In a split decision the Justices held that, a personal assistant hired under Pennsylvania Medicare, was not considered to be a public employee subject to mandatory union dues deductions like others state employees. The Court reasoned that the personal assistants were subject to the control of the private patients since the patients maintained control b b hiring, firing, training and supervising of the employee.
Harris v Quinn, No. 11-681 (Sp. Ct. 2014), decided June 30, 2014.
Lyle Denniston Reporter for scotus.com reports: "What the Court did do specifically was to draw a legal distinction for now between state and local employees that it will consider to be “full-fledged” public workers and workers who will be treated as something less than that — “partial public employees,” such as the workers in this case — for purposes of union organization. The workers in this case are home health care workers who look after a patient or two in the privacy of a household."