Adams and Reese Partner and Labor and Employment Attorney Michael MacHarg was interviewed by Law360 in “Strike Replacement Limbo Looms as UAW Action Expands.” The article was published in the Law 360 “Employment Authority” section of the legal publication’s website.
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Last week, the United Auto Workers Union had approximately 20,000 employees walk out of more than 40 parts-distribution centers operated by General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis. Negotiations are ongoing.
While the work stoppage has drawn attention to strikes, the National Labor Relations Board, as reported by Law360, is “considering a request by the agency’s chief prosecutor to make it tougher for employers to permanently replace workers who walk off the job.”
If the NLRB changes course, it would reverse a 1964 case called Hot Shoppes, “holding that employers do not violate the law when they permanently replace strikers unless they do so with an ‘independent unlawful purpose,’ such as to punish or discourage union membership, as reported by Law360. That decision was founded upon a 1938 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Labor Board v. Mackay Radio.
“What you will see is unions more aggressive, and quicker to strike, and more likely to strike, but for shorter durations,” MacHarg said in the interview. “The proposed change would 100%, for sure, result in more strikes.”
MacHarg is a member of the Labor and Employment Practice Group, assisting clients in labor relations and litigation. He assists clients with union avoidance, collective bargaining, contract administration, unfair labor practices, grievance and arbitration, wage and hour issues, and discrimination. Additionally, he has extensive experience related to workplace safety and health issues including compliance, audits, and citation defense.