The National Labor Board is responsible for enforcing the National Labor Act which is designed to encourage collective bargaining. Unfortunately, the members of the Board are appointed by the President of the United States and sometimes these folks appointed are not pro-labor. Some of these folks have actually been pro-management attorneys and advocates. When the Board is staffed with pro-labor members the rights of workers are protected and workplace justice is possible.
Bloomberg looks at the board in Biden Labor Lawyer Will Use Her Whole Enforcement Arsenal…
In a memo issued a few weeks after her July confirmation, she signaled interest in challenging a slew of precedents on issues including “permanent replacement” of striking workers and censorship of organizing via workplace email systems. Her office is prosecuting Alphabet Inc.’s Google for firing workers who organized against the company’s work with U.S. immigration authorities and Amazon.com Inc.’s Whole Foods Market for banning Black Lives Matter masks. (Both companies have denied wrongdoing.)
As this is written cereal maker Kellogg”s has announced they will try to “permanently replace” workers currently on strike. Time will tell if they are successful. It is without dispute that the threat of permanent replacements is a challenge to workers making gains. If we were to go on strike again having someone to determine we could be permanently replaced that is pro-worker would be helpful. Of course, so would passage of the PRO-ACT which makes permanently replacing workers illegal.
(free image via clipground.com)
