Any merit shop contractor or project owner with a project where merit shop or mixed merit shop / union shop crews are working will eventually deal with some form of union “picketing.” The term picketing is placed in quotes because its legal definition differs from its colloquial understanding in the industry. The colloquial term picketing
Unions
How to Challenge a Project Labor Agreement
By Wally Zimolong on
Posted in Project Labor Agreements, Unions
Building and Construction Trades Council of Metropolitan District v. Associated Builders and Contractors of Massachusetts Rhode Island, Inc Massachusetts Water Resources Authority v. Associated Builders and Contractors of Massachusetts Rhode Island, Inc, 507 U.S. 218, 113 S.Ct. 1190, 122 L.Ed.2d 565 (1993) , affectionately knows as Boston Harbor, is the seminal Supreme Court decision…
NLRB Slaps New Jersey Contractor for Illegal Double Breasted Operation
By Wally Zimolong on
Posted in Unions
A recent NLRB decision underscores the dangers of improperly operating a double breasted construction firm. In Rdm Concrete & Masonry, LLC, Collective Concrete, Inc., & Remco Concrete, LLC, Alter Egos & A Single Employer & New Jersey Bldg. Laborers Dist. Council, 366 NLRB No. 34 (Mar. 13, 2018), the Board held that the three…
Retaliatory Discharge: What you can learn from the Smith v. UFC matter?
By Wally Zimolong on
Posted in Unions
I don’t know much about the Ultimate Fighting Championship (“UFC”). I don’t follow the sport. However, I do follow the NLRB dockets and the matter Zubba, LLC d/b/a Ultimate Fighting Championship caught my attention. After some diligent research (a/k/a googling it), I learned that this case was apparently causing some scuttlebutt in the UFC world. …
Union “Extortion” Under the Hobbs Act
By Wally Zimolong on
Last week’s Boston Globe has a story about the recent dismissal of a criminal case against two Boston city officials for their involvement with an alleged union extortion scheme designed to pressure non-union businesses to give work to members of the local Teamsters Union. (The reporters were kind enough to seek my comments for the…
BREAKING – AFT Union WITHDRAWS Petition to Unionize Penn Grad Students
By Wally Zimolong on
Posted in Unions
Last summer, my pro bono representation of a group of University of Pennsylvania graduate students caused a bit of a brou-hah-hah among the SWJ‘s leading the unionization of Penn’s graduate schools. (It also garnered me the most gracious complement ever from the American Federation for Teachers, who sent out a mass email calling me…
Trouble Brewing with the Sheet Metal Workers?
By Wally Zimolong on
Posted in Unions
During a recent review of the NLRB dockets, I came across an interesting filing. The Sheet Metal Contractors Association (SMCA), who is the multi-employer association that bargains with Sheet Metal Workers Local 19. Local 19 has apparently filed an unfair labor practice charge against it. The docket is scant on precise details but it appears…
Cutting the Salt Out: Tips for Avoiding Union Salting Charges
By Wally Zimolong on
Posted in Unions
The strategy to avoid union salts is rather simple. But, simplicity does not mean easy. The process requires discipline. A salt is a paid union organizer that attempts to gain employment with a non-union employer for the purpose of either (a) organizing the employers workforce or (b) bringing a costly unfair labor practice charge for…
The Broader Implications of Unions and Digital Media Companies
By Wally Zimolong on
Posted in Unions
A recent New York Times article about the unionization of digital media companies like Vox, (the now defunct) Gawker, and Thrillist provides important lessons for companies concerned about unionization, not just those in the digital media niche.
Employers should pay attention to the demographics of these firms. Their employees are young and college educated. Given…
Using Social Media to Defeat a Union Election
By Wally Zimolong on
Posted in Unions
Businesses engage customers and clients online more than ever. Now, your online strategy needs to include a plan to combat union organizing. Unions have been ahead of the game on using social media and the internet to support their organizing campaigns. One of the reasons for that was the cost involved with the campaign. However,…