What does it mean to cross picket line?

Definition of cross the picket line : to go to work while other employees at one’s place of work are picketing.

Why you should never cross a picket line?

Crossing or not crossing a picket line can be a highly personal decision for an employee. Crossing the line can result in harassment from picketing co-workers and, in some cases, threats of violence. But honoring the picket line can leave employees feeling vulnerable about financial and job security.

Can I refuse to cross a picket line?

Where picketing takes place, employees not directly involved in the industrial action may refuse to cross picket lines. Such employees can normally be regarded as being on strike and treated accordingly. However, the pickets themselves must be in dispute with their own employer.

Is picketing illegal?

Mass picketing is unlawful under federal law because large unruly crowds could be used for the purpose of intimidation. Employees are entitled to picket in small numbers outside the employer’s facilities, but they cannot block entrances or demonstrate in front of an employer’s home.

What does a lockout represent?

A lockout is a work stoppage or denial of employment initiated by the management of a company during a labour dispute. In contrast to a strike, in which employees refuse to work, a lockout is initiated by employers or industry owners.

Which things may employees not do during a picket?

A person who takes part in a picket protected in terms of the Act does not commit a delict or a breach of contract. This means that the employer may not sue a person or a union for damages caused by a picket. 2. The employer may not take disciplinary action against an employee for participating in a lawful picket.

Is a sympathy strike legal?

They simply ban strikes, stoppages, and slowdowns. For years, the National Labor Relations Board and the courts held that general no-strike clauses did not prohibit sympathy strikes. Judges cited the legal rule that a waiver of a legal right must be “clear and unmistakable”—or the right was not waived.

Are Flying Pickets legal?

Flying pickets are groups of striking workers that move from one workplace to another to picket them. Usually flying pickets are illegal – you can only join a picket line at your workplace. Trade union reps can be on picket lines at different workplaces if they’re responsible for organising workers in those workplaces.

What is the purpose of a picket line?

Picketing is a common tactic used by trade unions during strikes, who will try to prevent dissident members of the union, members of other unions and non-unionised workers from working. Those who cross the picket line and work despite the strike are known pejoratively as scabs.

Can I be fired for picketing?

Under federal law, you cannot be fired for participating in a protected strike or picketing against your employer. Your right to reinstatement may be lost if you have engaged in violence or other serious misconduct in connection with your strike or picketing activities.

What is picketing in history?

Picketing is a form of demonstration or protest by which people block the entrance to a shop, factory or office.

What happens during a lockout?

A lockout occurs where an employer bars its unionized workers from entering the workplace until such time as they accept to work on the employer’s terms and conditions. During a lockout, the employer may continue business operations with non-unit employees and temporary replacements.

What happens if you cross a picket line?

Crossing or not crossing a picket line can be a highly personal decision for an employee. Crossing the line can result in harassment from picketing co-workers and, in some cases, threats of violence.

Can you discipline an employee for refusing to cross a picket line?

Any discipline for an employee’s refusal to cross a picket line will be deemed a violation of the NLRA and an unfair labor practice, noted James Hays, an attorney with Sheppard Mullin in New York City.

What does the NLRA say about a picket line?

The National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) shields nonunion, nonsupervisory employees’ decision to honor a picket line as protected concerted activity. Any discipline for an employee’s refusal to cross a picket line will be deemed a violation of the NLRA and an unfair labor practice,…