MORI Et Al. v. INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF BOILERMAKERS, IRON SHIP BUILDERS, BLACKSMITHS, FORGERS & HELPERS, LOCAL LODGE NO. 6, Et Al.

Background

A national union adopted a new dues plan at its August 1977 convention through non-secret voting, creating a two percent “field dues supplement” and an additional half-percent to go to the national office. A local union (Local 6) began collecting the new field dues plus regular monthly dues from several local members, even though those members never approved the change and the local’s attempts to stop collection were denied by the union president. The Ninth Circuit upheld the dues increase, and the affected members filed for review by the Supreme Court and asked a Justice to pause the lower court’s order.

Reasoning

The core question was whether federal law requires a secret-ballot majority of members in good standing before a dues increase like this can take effect. Justice Rehnquist, acting in his emergency role, found a reasonable chance that at least four Justices would agree to hear the case. He emphasized that about $150,000 held in escrow could be hard to recover if collection continued. Weighing the likelihood of success and the balance of harms, he concluded a temporary pause was warranted and granted a stay of the lower court’s order while the higher court considers the petition.

Real world impact

The stay halts enforcement of the dues increase for now and preserves the escrowed funds. It directly affects field construction members and Local 6 by preventing immediate full collection of the contested charges. The decision is temporary: it was made by one Justice to allow review and does not resolve the underlying legal dispute on the merits.