BSLW6604 Lecture Notes - Lecture 15: Clayton Antitrust Act, National Labor Relations Board, Administrative Law Judge
Labor Law
1. Overview
a. EEs have right to join or assist a union. A union is an organization whose primary
purpose is to negotiate and administer a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBAs) for its
EEs
b. The challenge for professional athletes, among others, I that players in professional
leagues are covered by both CBAs and Individual Standard Player Contracts
c. Professional athletes are covered under state and federal labor laws
d. Colleges athletes, as defined by the courts and the NCAA, are primarily students and
explicitly not employees. As such, they are protected by school, conference, and
constitutional laws
2. History
a. Commonwealth v. Pullis (1806)
i. “Collective organizing was a criminal conspiracy”
ii. Sparked tremendous amount of protest from workers
b. Commonwealth v. Hunt (1842)
i. If the collective action was beneficial then conspiracy charges didn’t exist
c. Clayton Act (1914)
i. “Labor of a human being is not a commodity or article commerce”
ii. Ensured that unions would not be subject to the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890
d. Norris-LaGuardia Act (1932)
i. Also known as the Federal Anti-Injunction Act
ii. Limited the power of the federal government to issue injunction and limit union
activity
iii. During a labor dispute, a federal court could not issue an injunction forbidding
the EEs from refusing to work or peaceful picketing
iv. No limitation on state courts from issuing injunctions
e. The National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) (1935)
i. Also known as the Wagner Act
ii. Gave workers the right to join or assist unions, without fear of ER retribution
iii. First piece of legislation that allowed EEs the right to freely pursue unionization
iv. Covers all areas of labor law, including representation elections, unfair labor
practices, and duties of representation
v. Excludes seven categories of workers from protection including:
1. Government EEs
2. Airline or railroad EEs
3. Spouses and children of EEs
4. Independent contractors
5. Domestic servants
6. Agricultural workers
7. Supervisors and managers
f. The Labor National Management Relations Act (1947)
i. Also known as the Taft-Hartley Act
ii. Added unfair union practices which prohibited unions from pressuring EEs to
join or assist a union
3. The National Labor Relations Act
a. SS 7: EE Rights
i. Right to form and organize labor organizations
ii. Right to become members of labor unions or to refuse to join
iii. Right to bargain collectively through representation of their own choosing
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