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How does at-will employment work with union busting? I remember working at Amazon they were very adamant about everything being at-will. Furthermore, in their m

How does at-will employment work with union busting? I remember working at Amazon they were very adamant about everything being at-will. Furthermore, in their management training, they didn't even tiptoe around their hatred of unions. They basically have a formal system developed to rat out any union organizers. The only reason I can infer for the existence of such a system is so that they can bust unions. They seem willing to take the legal risks that come with retaliation.

kitanata 7y ago
It is my understanding, that from a legal perspective firing an employee in retaliation for engaging in organized labor even if their employment agreement is "at-will" (which is the default), is illegal. But IANAL. Source: https://blogs.findlaw.com/law_and_life/2014/10/can-you-be-fired-for-going-on-strike.html https://blogs.findlaw.com/law_and_life/2014/10/can-you-be-fi...
SpicyLemonZest 7y ago
“Union busting” is a pretty vague term. There’s no legal issue with a company hating unions or trying to prevent a union from forming, as long as they don’t prevent employees from talking or retaliate against them for it.
- kitanata 7y ago
  That may be true, but in this instance there is clear evidence that Mr. Smalls was retaliated against for his labor organizing actions.
  - toasterlovin 7y ago
    Allegedly.
  - missedthecue 7y ago
    "Mr. Smalls was retaliated against for his labor organizing actions" This is actually quite unclear
- walshemj 7y ago
  Actually its has a particular meaning in US labour law
alasdair_ 7y ago
>How does at-will employment work with union busting? It's similar to the way at-will employment works with ADA protected classes - sure, they can fire you, but if you can show that them firing you was because of a protected action (union organizing), you can sue and will likely win. Given the likely fact that Amazon only cared about quarantine for this individual, only after they organized a strike, and three weeks (!) after exposure, it's pretty clear that what Amazon did here was illegal.
- zaarn 7y ago
  Amazon is simply betting that the employee either can't afford a lawyer or their lawyer isn't better than Amazon's legal team. They can spend a lot of money on making sure of that.
  - Zenbit_UX 7y ago
    No, they don't care, they're simply betting that it'll cost them less to pay him off in a settlement than to deal with a union.
radcon 7y ago
> How does at-will employment work with union busting? No relation whatsoever.

kitanata 7y ago

It is my understanding, that from a legal perspective firing an employee in retaliation for engaging in organized labor even if their employment agreement is "at-will" (which is the default), is illegal. But IANAL. Source: https://blogs.findlaw.com/law_and_life/2014/10/can-you-be-fired-for-going-on-strike.html https://blogs.findlaw.com/law_and_life/2014/10/can-you-be-fi...

SpicyLemonZest 7y ago

“Union busting” is a pretty vague term. There’s no legal issue with a company hating unions or trying to prevent a union from forming, as long as they don’t prevent employees from talking or retaliate against them for it.

kitanata 7y ago
That may be true, but in this instance there is clear evidence that Mr. Smalls was retaliated against for his labor organizing actions.
- toasterlovin 7y ago
  Allegedly.
- missedthecue 7y ago
  "Mr. Smalls was retaliated against for his labor organizing actions" This is actually quite unclear
walshemj 7y ago
Actually its has a particular meaning in US labour law

alasdair_ 7y ago

>How does at-will employment work with union busting? It's similar to the way at-will employment works with ADA protected classes - sure, they can fire you, but if you can show that them firing you was because of a protected action (union organizing), you can sue and will likely win. Given the likely fact that Amazon only cared about quarantine for this individual, only after they organized a strike, and three weeks (!) after exposure, it's pretty clear that what Amazon did here was illegal.

zaarn 7y ago
Amazon is simply betting that the employee either can't afford a lawyer or their lawyer isn't better than Amazon's legal team. They can spend a lot of money on making sure of that.
- Zenbit_UX 7y ago
  No, they don't care, they're simply betting that it'll cost them less to pay him off in a settlement than to deal with a union.

radcon 7y ago

> How does at-will employment work with union busting? No relation whatsoever.