Requiring membership of student organisations is seen by some as a form of forced unionisation, contrary to freedom of association.
Opponents argue that VSU makes it more difficult for students to have high quality sports grounds, lively music and social venues, and the resources necessary to mount protests and political campaigns, leading to moribund campuses.
[citation needed] Levying of fees is criticised by some on the grounds that it is financially onerous, particularly to students who may already be struggling with the associated costs of university study.
Since 1 July 2006, Australian universities have faced fines of A$100 per student for compelling payment for any non-academic good or service.
By the 1970s, the overtly political nature of the Australian Union of Students, which ran a number of overtly progressive campaigns (for example, in support of the Palestine Liberation Organization[8]), led to a conservative minority within that organisation to call for voluntary student organisation membership.
Advocates of VSU received a boost, however, when the Howard government gained control of the Senate at the 2004 Federal election.
On 16 March 2005, Brendan Nelson introduced the Higher Education Support Amendment (Abolition of Compulsory Up-front Student Union Fees) Bill 2005 before the Parliament.
In September 2010 the Gillard Labor government introduced legislation to allow universities to charge students a compulsory service fee of up to $250 a year to fund amenities such as sporting facilities, childcare and counselling.
Under legislation passed in 1999, but subsequently superseded, VSM could be enacted at any New Zealand university by a referendum of students.
There are several terms being used to describe voluntary student unionism and its opposite, each with its own frequency, accuracy, impartiality, and favourability.