Andrew Strom, a labor lawyer and contributor to the OnLabor blog, joined the America’s Work Force Union Podcast to discuss the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision in the Starbucks case where seven Memphis employees who were leaders in an organizing campaign were fired.
Strom began by explaining how the Supreme Court likely came to what could be called a unanimous decision. He added his opinion that the ruling might not be as bad for the NLRB’s ability to help return workers to work as people are thinking. While many media outlets the as a major blow to the NLRB’s ability, Strom talked about the potential positives that may come from this decision.
The discussion then turned to Strom’s recent blog about national labor policy in the United States. Given the recent unionization efforts by the UAW in the South and the responses from many political leaders in the region, Strom questioned how one governor’s threats to unionize workers are different from an employer doing the same thing. He went into detail about the comments from six governors in southern states and how they could be responsible for deterring organizing drives.
Strom then discussed a need for uniform labor law and how this would potentially deter threatening statements from state leaders. He started by addressing so-called “Right-to-Work” states and how that term misrepresents the rights of workers in these states. Strom discussed how former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley was able to deter companies with a union work force from bringing their business to the state. He said that until the government can create a uniform national labor law, there will continue to be issues for unions trying to organize.
To hear more from Strom, listen to the show above.
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