Lehnert v. Ferris Faculty Association

At issue in Lehnert v. Ferris Faculty Association (1991) was whether the union representing faculty members at a college could compel dissenting members in an agency shop to subsidize legislative lobbying and other political activities not directly related to standard collective bargaining activities such as contract negotiation and grievance adjudication. Ultimately, in Lehnert the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the unions of public employees may charge dissenting employees the cost of activities that are clearly germane to collective bargaining as are justified by the government's vital policy interest in labor peace. In addition, the Court sought to avoid having “freeloaders,” those who did not pay for benefits that unions gained on their behalf, typically in the form of salary increases and benefits. At the same ...