5 ms·
Even though we might not like the idea, Californians can be fired simply for complaining though—correct?
by jdxcode 6y ago
Even though we might not like the idea, Californians can be fired simply for complaining though—correct?
- elicash 6y agoNLRA covers protected concerted activity at the national level. Whether this speech falls into that, or whether these employees are covered under the NLRA, I don't think we have the specifics for. But there are more worker protections than people realize. The biggest problem with them is enforcement and lack of penalties.
- paulcole 6y agoIf there's hardly any consequences then you're not protected at all.
- elicash 6y agoI agree with the general point, but I'd add that there's additional power in collective action, but that's of course harder to organize than a legal challenge. And also that people (both management and not) are also just unaware of the laws. But yes, to just name one example, I believe there should be punitive damages when a company is found to be in violation of these labor laws.
- paulcole 6y agoAn individual can’t take part in a collective action unless they have some kind of personal safety net in place. Get fired for speaking up about something illegal? Better hope you have a new job lined up or you have plenty of savings. Because it’s gonna be a long time before you either get your job back or see any kind of settlement.
- elicash 6y agoI work in labor. I've seen incredible things happen when workers bravely take risks in collective action. These are some of the most underpaid workers in America.
- jdxcode 6y agoI'm certainly not a lawyer, just a software engineer trying to understand the world a little better. That said, does the NLRA actually protect against this? Reading about it talks a lot about collective action and forming unions, but what if it's a single individual complaining? Is that protected?
- elicash 6y agoI'm also not a lawyer, but as somebody who works in labor -- no, it doesn't have to be about "unions." It can absolutely be about working conditions, if they're in discussions with their coworkers. You're going to be on safer ground when there's a call for concerted action of some kind. You asked about "this" situation specifically, and I don't know enough about what happened to offer an opinion here. A bit unrelated, but one of my favorite cases on the concept involved Triple Play Sports Bar & Grille, where somebody was fired for a Facebook "like." https://lizerbramlaw.com/2014/09/09/can-employee-fired-facebook-like/ https://lizerbramlaw.com/2014/09/09/can-employee-fired-faceb...
- jdxcode 6y agoI think that's totally related for what I was getting at—great example. Of course you're right that there is almost certainly some level of collaboration here too.
- phkahler 6y ago>> where somebody was fired for a Facebook "like." At what point does a person at a company digging through someones social media posts constitute stalking?
- elicash 6y agoI think this would be your best bet to make an argument against this type of behavior: https://www.natlawreview.com/article/does-creating-impression-surveillance-violate-labor-law https://www.natlawreview.com/article/does-creating-impressio...
- jellicle 6y agoThe NLRB hasn't done any enforcement for decades at this point and is currently engaged in eliminating the paper protections that still exist. I would say the opposite: the USA has much less in the way of worker protections than people generally realize. There are many unjust things that occur where the public and workers think "that shouldn't be allowed" but it is.
- jschwartzi 6y agoJust because something is legal doesn't make it right.
- jdxcode 6y agoI'm trying to answer the question "Is this retribution?" Which has legal consequences.