Albuquerque, N.M. (August 19, 2002) –The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit ruled public employers and unions may not conspire to violate the First Amendment rights of employees. Specifically, the court ruled that public employers have a duty to ensure that employees are not compelled to support union political activities with their mandatory union dues.

The ruling came in Wessel v. Albuquerque, a case brought by National Right to Work Foundation attorneys on behalf of city government employees against the city of Albuquerque and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), Local 624, after the city deducted union dues used for activities unrelated to collective bargaining, including support of union politics, and without proper procedural protections.

Like most agreements around the country, the collective bargaining agreement included an indemnification clause whereby the union promises the city that it would pay all legal costs in defending a suit filed by employees whose constitutional rights were violated. These agreements remove the incentive for the employer to ensure the union is not mistreating workers.

“Union officials should not be allowed to bribe employers to do their dirty work by promising to reimburse all legal costs that arise out of violating employees’ First Amendment rights,” said Stefan Gleason, Vice President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “This ruling is a small step toward curtailing the power of union officials to shake down workers for political contributions.”

The case was originally filed in January 2000 by Rory Wessel of Albuquerque, and 13 other city employees, after the city of Albuquerque heeded the demands of union officials of AFSCME Local 624 to withhold compulsory union dues from employees’ paychecks without legislative authorization and without observing constitutional due process requirements.

The court ruled that indemnification agreements violate First Amendment protections as articulated in the Foundation-won Supreme Court decision in Chicago Teachers Union v. Hudson. Under Hudson, union officials must provide independently audited disclosure of their books and justify expenditures before seizing any forced union dues from employees who have chosen to refrain from union membership.

The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation is a nonprofit, charitable organization providing free legal aid to employees whose human or civil rights have been violated by compulsory unionism abuses. The Foundation, which can be contacted toll-free at 1-800-336-3600, assists thousands of employees in about 200 cases nationwide per year.