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First Amendment › Free Speech › Unions

The First Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits the government from making laws respecting the establishment of religion, prohibiting the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech... more +
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits the government from making laws respecting the establishment of religion, prohibiting the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech or the press, preventing citizens from peacefully assembling, or interfering with citizens' ability to petition the government for redress of their grievances. The First Amendment is one of the most sacred aspects of the American legal tradition and has spawned a vast body of jurisprudence and commentary. less -
Foley & Lardner LLP

“Captive Audience” Bans: Employers Should Be Aware of This Trend

Foley & Lardner LLP on

As organized labor activity has been on the rise in recent years and stories about union-related matters have become regular news, labor relations questions have ever-increasingly become front-of-mind for employers. It is...more

Kilpatrick

Illinois Passes Law Limiting 'Captive Audience' Meetings

Kilpatrick on

On July 31, 2024, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker signed Senate Bill 3649, the “Worker Freedom of Speech Act,” (the “Act”) which prohibits employers from using “captive audience” meetings with employees to discuss an...more

FordHarrison

New Law Alert! Illinois Freedom of Speech Act and Limitations on Union (and Other Meetings)

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Real World Impact: The newly enacted Illinois Freedom of Speech Act prohibits employers in Illinois from requiring employees to participate in employer-sponsored meetings if the meeting is designed to communicate an...more

Spilman Thomas & Battle, PLLC

The Academic Advisor - Education Law Insights, Issue 3, March 2024

Spilman Thomas & Battle, PLLC on

Welcome to the third issue of The Academic Advisor for 2024. In this edition, we examine the following topics of import for schools, institutions of higher education, and other education-focused organizations: -...more

Littler

New York District Court Enjoins Enforcement of Law Limiting Employer Speech During Organizing Campaigns

Littler on

A federal judge in New York recently cast doubt on the validity of state laws that seek to restrict employer speech in connection with union organizing. In New York State Vegetable Growers Association, Inc. v. Letitia James,...more

Bricker Graydon LLP

Sixth Circuit rules officers have no first amendment right to record interviews during police misconduct investigations

Bricker Graydon LLP on

Technology. It is the proverbial blessing and curse that has resulted in an increasing amount of litigation in the courts. One such lawsuit presented the issue of whether the First Amendment provides police officers and their...more

Harris Beach PLLC

Connecticut Governor Signs Law Prohibiting Employer-Employee “Captive Audience” Communications

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On May 17, 2022, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont signed into law the so-called “captive audience” bill (Senate Bill 163), which prohibits employers from requiring their employees to (a) attend employer-sponsored meetings that...more

Franczek P.C.

NLRB General Counsel Urges Board to Find Captive Audience Speeches are Unlawful

Franczek P.C. on

For decades, employers have been permitted to hold mandatory meetings or “captive audience speeches” in response to union organizing campaigns to present the company’s position on unionization. On April 7, 2022, the National...more

Husch Blackwell LLP

Missouri Supreme Court To Decide Constitutionality Of Public Labor Reform Law

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On November 16, 2020, the Missouri Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case of Missouri National Education Association, et al. v. Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, et al., Ferguson-Florissant School...more

Proskauer - Labor Relations Update

NLRB Seeks Comment: Rats, Banners and Neutrals, Oh My!

Proskauer - Labor Relations Update on

An age old question under the National Labor Relations Act is what constitutes “picketing”? By the Supreme Court’s definition, picketing is inherently coercive and may not be directed against a neutral employer. An issue...more

Littler

Board Overturns Purple Communications, Restores Employer Right to Restrict Email Use

Littler on

On December 17, 2019, in a 3-1 decision split along party lines, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) restored to employers the right to restrict employees from using company email systems for nonbusiness purposes.  The...more

Epstein Becker & Green

NLRB Reverses Purple Communications – Holds Employer May Restrict Employees’ Use of Email and Other Information Technology Systems

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On December 17, 2019, the National Labor Relations Board (“Board”) ruled that an employer’s rule prohibiting use of its email system for nonbusiness purposes did not violate employees’ rights under the National Labor...more

Proskauer - Labor Relations Update

No, Unions Do Not Have A Free Speech Right To Engage In Unlawful Secondary Boycott Activity, Federal Appeals Court Rules

Proskauer - Labor Relations Update on

On October 28, 2019, the Ninth Circuit, following in the footsteps of the D.C. Circuit and the Second Circuit, affirmed an order entered by the NLRB confirming that prohibitions on secondary boycotts under Section...more

Polsinelli

NLRB Finds Inflatables Debatable

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“Scabby the Rat” and “Corporate Fat Cat”…beware.  A recent National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or the “Board”) Advice Memorandum has suggested that the use of oversized inflatable rats may constitute illegal secondary...more

Franczek P.C.

NLRB General Counsel Seeks to Deflate Scabby the Rat

Franczek P.C. on

Scabby, the gnarly, diseased, inflatable rat, has long been recognized as a symbol of a labor protest. During the Obama-era, the National Labor Relations Board likened the use of Scabby to peaceful, protected activities such...more

Fisher Phillips

NLRB Deals Blow To Unions’ Ability To Use Fees For Lobbying Purposes

Fisher Phillips on

The National Labor Relations Board just decided that private sector unions cannot use fees paid by nonmembers to fund their lobbying efforts. Especially when coupled with last year’s momentous Janus decision at the U.S....more

Sherman & Howard L.L.C.

No Love For Scabby The Rat From The Seventh Circuit

Sherman & Howard L.L.C. on

In early 2014, a union protest began in a small town. On its second day, a town code enforcement officer took issue with one notorious protester—Scabby the Rat, an inflatable 6- to 25-foot rat balloon symbolizing union...more

McNees Wallace & Nurick LLC

Court Holds Union Membership ‘Worthy of Constitutional Protection’

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The Third Circuit Court of Appeals, the appeals court that has jurisdiction over federal cases in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and the U. S. Virgin Islands, recently held that a public employer violates the First...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

The State Of Union Funding - California And The Ninth Circuit Show How States Might Try To Mitigate The Effect of Janus

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Labor friendly states will likely be looking for opportunities to lessen the financial blow of the Supreme Court’s decision in Janus v. AFSCME. The Ninth Circuit’s recent decision in Interpipe Contracting v. Becerra just...more

Snell & Wilmer

First Amendment Free Speech Protection Is Alive and Well

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The First Amendment’s free speech guarantee has proved determinative in a variety of very recent Supreme Court decisions. In Matal v. Tam (see here), the Court held that the First Amendment precludes denial of registration of...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Victory’s Motion Is Not A “SLAPP” Dunk: Petition Gathers Are Trespassing When Seeking Signatures In Front Of Store Entrances

Seyfarth Shaw LLP on

Synopsis: Ralphs Grocery v. Victory Consultants, 17 Cal. App. 5th 245 (2017), gives some solace to private property store owners. The Silver lining of the Victory Consultants grocery store decision—petitioners and signature...more

Proskauer - California Employment Law

California Employment Law Notes - January 2017

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$90 Million Judgment Reinstated: Employers Must Relieve Employees Of All Duties During Their Rest Periods - Augustus v. ABM Sec. Servs., Inc., 2016 WL 7407328 (Cal. S. Ct. 2016) - Jennifer Augustus filed this...more

Conn Maciel Carey LLP

Texas Judge Blocks DOL Persuader Rule with Nationwide Permanent Injunction

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On November 16, 2016, a Texas federal judge permanently blocked the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) from enforcing its persuader rule in National Federation of Independent Business, et al. v. Thomas E. Perez, et al., Case...more

FordHarrison

Implementation of DOL's New Persuader Rule Permanently Blocked

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A federal court in Texas has issued a decision permanently blocking the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) from implementing the final version of its "persuader rule." See National Federation of Independent Businesses v. Perez...more

McNees Wallace & Nurick LLC

Judge Puts Brakes on Department of Labor’s “Persuader Rule”

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The United States Department of Labor issued regulations earlier this year finalizing the “Persuader Rule.” Under the new Rule, employers and consultants (including lawyers) would be required to report labor relations advice...more

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