I love sharing clips of my daughter playing music. It's made for such a cool catalogue of her growth as an artist over the years. So, here's a snippet of her cover of The Cure's Just Like Heaven from her show a couple of weekends ago.
Friday, June 17, 2022
WIRTW #630: the “just like heaven” edition
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Thursday, June 16, 2022
The 7th nominee for the “Worst Employer of 2022” is … the murder enabler
"It is with a deep sadness and a heavy heart I share one of our students, Riley Whitelaw, passed away over the weekend. Currently, we are unable to share additional information."
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Wednesday, June 15, 2022
Making threats vs. stating facts during union organizing
"Just know that if you unionize, when you are negotiating your benefits, you could gain, you could lose, or you could stay the same."
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Tuesday, June 14, 2022
Ohio decides arming teachers is the solution to mass shootings in schools; Ohio is very wrong
Yesterday, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed a new law that will lower the training hours school personnel to be armed from about 700 hours to a mere 24 hours — four for scenario-based training plus 20 for first-aid training, school-shooting history eduction, and reunification education.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Monday, June 13, 2022
LGBTQ+ rights vs. religious liberty
"It's an abomination to God. Rainbow is not meant to be displayed as a sign for sexual gender."
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Friday, June 10, 2022
WIRTW #629: the “podcast appearance” edition
Earlier this week I had the pleasure of appearing on the Decision Vision podcast. The topic of discussion: "Should I allow my company to unionize?"
In an answer that should surprise absolutely no one who's been reading along, my answer is a firm, "No."
Part of my reasoning is that I do not believe unions continue to provide a necessary and valuable service for the employees they represent.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Wednesday, June 8, 2022
Can you legally close a facility in response to unionization?
Almost two months to the day that workers at the College Ave. Starbucks location in Ithaca, New York, voted to unionize, the coffee conglomerate announced its intent to close the store on June 10. Employees claim that the closure was in retaliation for unionization and a post-vote wildcat strike over an overflowed grease trap.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Tuesday, June 7, 2022
The 6th nominee for the “Worst Employer of 2022” is … the sexual harassment ignorer
All of the following allegedly happened during the mere five weeks that Hannah Navarro worked at a Pratville, Alabama, Chipotle restaurant.
- On Navarro's first day of employment, Nick Baker, the store's general manager, said that she could sit on his lap.
- A few days later Baker told Navarro that she could be his "boo." He then grabbed her arm when she told him that she had a boyfriend and declined.
- Baker (along with other male employees) would pass around pictures of female employees (including Navarro), visit their social media accounts, and make open comments about their bodies at work.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Monday, June 6, 2022
Surveilling your employee’s online activity to out union supporters is illegal … like, really, really illegal
Elon Musk. The name itself evokes a visceral reaction. Electric car visionary. Astronaut wannabe. Opponent of remote work. Potential Twitter owner. Failed SNL host.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Friday, June 3, 2022
WIRTW #628: the “summer tour” edition
Outdoor music season is beginning here in Northeast Ohio, which means that my daughter has a bunch of shows booked for the summer … starting this coming Sunday from 4 - 6 pm at Crocker Park.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Thursday, June 2, 2022
Mere "discouragement" is enough to state an FMLA interference claim, federal appeals court holds
"You've taken serious amounts of FMLA … don't take any more FMLA. If you do so, you will be disciplined."
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Wednesday, June 1, 2022
Do you know? Unfair labor practice strikes
Workers who recently organized a Peoria, Illinois, Starbucks walked off the job on a recent Saturday in protest of alleged unfair labor practice committed by their employer at the store. The strike lasted a half-day and there are reports of similar strikes at other stores around the country.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Tuesday, May 31, 2022
Union yes? Employees, be careful what you wish for.
On Jan. 7, Great Lakes Coffee Roasting in Detroit temporarily closed following a Covid outbreak that sidelined nine employees. It never reopened, and now it's closed permanently.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Friday, May 27, 2022
WIRTW #627: the “you’re 16” edition
Everyone please wish my smart, compassionate, talented, beautiful, kick-ass daughter a happy 16th birthday!!!
Here's what I read this past week that I think you should read, too.
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Thursday, May 26, 2022
Explaining the “Golden Age of Union Organizing”
Unions aren't just having a moment, they are having their best moment in at least 50 years.
- What has caused the "perfect storm" of union organizing that employers are currently experiencing?
- How have the White House's policies impacted unionization and collective bargaining?
- What explains the trend of smaller, "in-house" unions, such as those seen at Starbucks and Amazon?
- How should employers assess their labor strategies in response to these changes?
Here's a preview of what you'll hear in the episode.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Wednesday, May 25, 2022
Breaches of confidentiality during internal investigations chill future reports of workplace misconduct
"Nothing you share will be attributed to you and your feedback will remain anonymous."
Charlotte Cook says her name and details of conversations about her time at BrewDog—which focused on workplace safety, problems with human resources, and the circumstances under which she left the company—were provided by [HR consultant] Wiser to BrewDog without her knowledge or consent.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Tuesday, May 24, 2022
Court upholds termination of employee for off-duty Facebook posts critical of Black Lives Matter
"Black lives" matter causes segregation. Have you ever hear[d] of "white lives" matter or "[J]ewish" lives matter[?] No. Equal opportunity.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Monday, May 23, 2022
Federal court holds that the NLRB doesn’t have a sense of humor
On June 6, 2019, unionized employees of Vox Media, a left-leaning digital media company, walked off the job during union contract negotiations. That same day, Ben Domenech, executive officer of FDRLST Media and publisher of The Federalist (which is the direct opposite of left-leaning), posted this tweet from his personal Twitter account: "FYI @fdrlst first one of you tries to unionize I swear I’ll send you back to the salt mine."
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Friday, May 20, 2022
WIRTW #626: the “seminar/webinar” edition
If you're located in Northeast Ohio and don't have our upcoming Wickens Workshop on your calendar, why not? I, along with two of my colleagues, will be tackling the key wage and hour issues facing your business. We'll be joined by Mark D'Agostino of ConnectedHR, who will moderate the panel discussion
- When: Thurs., June 9
- Light Breakfast: 8 am
- Program: 8:30 - 10 am
- Location: Main Event Avon, 35605 Chester Road
- Cost: Free
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Thursday, May 19, 2022
Do we need labor unions anymore?
When I challenge the continued viability of labor unions and the lack of benefits they offer to or confer upon 21st century employees, this is the refrain I often hear.
Minimum wage ✔️
Overtime ✔️
OSHA ✔️
Child labor protections ✔️
Anti-discrimination laws ✔️
ERISA ✔️
None of those laws, I'm told, would exist without the historic efforts put forth by labor unions.
You know what? That statement is 100 percent correct. Labor unions played a huge role in the passage of the FLSA, OSHA, ERISA, and Title VII, each of which granted a wealth of new rights and protections to employees.
They also help render labor unions irrelevant.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Wednesday, May 18, 2022
How do you handle employees talking about “replacement theory” at work?
The "Great Replacement" is a conspiracy theory that certain leftist political forces are bringing non-whites into the United States and other Western countries to "replace" white voters to achieve their political agenda. It is often tied to anti-immigration groups and white supremacists. It's also the motivation that caused Payton Gendron to shoot 13 Black individuals in a Buffalo supermarket this past weekend, killing 10.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Tuesday, May 17, 2022
Employers, your awful stereotypes in job ads aren’t cute or clever, they’re offensive and illegal
"Meet H&N's newest assistant brewer," the Instagram post began. How nice, a brewery advertising its female-friendly work environment.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Monday, May 16, 2022
Don’t ask employees about their problems after a union comes knocking
"I'm here to listen."
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Friday, May 13, 2022
WIRTW #625: the “war on women” edition
How do you support your female employees amid times of great uncertainty about the continued viability of their reproductive rights and body autonomy?
As the pandemic has shown so clearly, public health issues are workplace issues. Business leaders are responsible for protecting the health and well-being of our employees, and that includes protecting reproductive rights and abortion access.…Levi Strauss joins other notable employers such as Amazon, Citigroup, Salesforce, and Yelp in covering employees' abortion-related travel expenses. I say bravo!
Under our current benefits plan, Levi Strauss & Co. employees are eligible for reimbursement for healthcare-related travel expenses for services not available in their home state, including those related to reproductive health care and abortion. There is also a process in place through which employees who are not in our benefits plan, including part-time hourly workers, can seek reimbursement for travel costs incurred under the same circumstances.
Given what is at stake, business leaders need to make their voices heard and act to protect the health and well-being of our employees. That means protecting reproductive rights.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Thursday, May 12, 2022
Let’s play spot the issue
Let's see if you can spot the employment law issue from this story, which I've borrowed from our local police blotter.
On April 26, the owner of a bar came to the police station regarding an ex-employee who stole his daughter's AirPods.
The stealing incident, which took place in February, led the owner to track the pods to a house that just so happened to be the home of the ex-employee's sister.
That's when the owner told the employee he was withholding his last check to cover the cost of the AirPods.
The man needed a police report to document the incident and provide the state justification of docking the ex-employee $250 from his last paycheck.
What do you think?
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Wednesday, May 11, 2022
Your front-line employees are not security guards
A video made the rounds yesterday on Twitter of a mass of Best Buy employees foiling a shoplifting attempt with a stellar zone defense.
This Best Buy has a better defense than your favorite NFL team pic.twitter.com/pBlilzeAj9
— NFL Memes (@NFL_Memes) May 9, 2022
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Tuesday, May 10, 2022
Don’t file criminal charges against employees who’ve engaged in protected activity
Friedrich Nietzsche once said, "It is impossible to suffer without making someone pay for it; every complaint already contains revenge." Employment, however, is no place for revenge.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Monday, May 9, 2022
The NLRB is coming for your handbook (again)
- Corrective action rules
- A dress code
- A prohibition on cell phone use while working
- A social media policy
- Confidentiality rules
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Friday, May 6, 2022
WIRTW #624: the “it’s snot okay” edition
Earlier this week our country officially passed 1 million Covid-19 deaths. According to the World Health Organization, Covid's full death toll is three times higher than officially reported.
Whether the actual number is 1 million or 3 million, it's an awful milestone and a grim reminder that Covid is still out there, mutating and circulating in the community. Indeed, Covid numbers are rising nationwide, with some counties and even entire states moving back into the "high transmission" category after a short restbite.
You'd think after two-plus years of pandemic living, people would know the rules of Covid-19 road. For example, the importance of practicing good hygiene habits and not sneezing directly into the palm of your hand.
Some people, however, appear not to have received this message. For example, consider the cashier at a local Skechers store that Norah and I visited last weekend. All we wanted to do was buy her a pair of comfortable shoes to wear to her new job. Instead, we got this nasty encounter.
🤧 💦 🖐️ 🦠 😳 🤢
Here's what I read this past week that I think you should be reading, too.
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Thursday, May 5, 2022
Why are labor unions are having their moment?
Yesterday I shared about the moment labor unions are currently having, with representation petitions surging 57% over the past six months, and 625% in the hospitality and food service industry over the past decade.
The question is why.
To be sure, toxic management, poor workplace culture, and low wages are a factor. But they are a factor anytime a labor union takes hold in a workplace. I'm looking for the reasons our current labor movement is having its moment in time.
Here are my thoughts.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Wednesday, May 4, 2022
If it feels like labor unions are having their moment, it’s because they absolutely are
Union representation petitions are surging. According to the National Labor Relations Board, they have increased a whopping 57% over the past six months.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Tuesday, May 3, 2022
What was your worst job ever?
The year was 1989. It was the summer between my junior and senior years in high school. I worked as a busboy in the dining room of an assisted living facility. It paid $7 an hour, which was a great wage 33 years ago.
Clearing tables, however, wasn't the only job duty. Part of my job was to "drive" non-ambulatory residents from their apartments to the dining room for dinner. One resident in particular — who, in hindsight, almost certainly suffered from some form of dementia — would answer her door completely nude. But that wasn't what made that summer job my worst job ever.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Monday, May 2, 2022
I’m begging you, STOP firing union organizers
Brenda Garcia led union efforts at Chipotle as one of its employees. Or, rather, she was one of its employees until last week, when the restaurant chain fired her.
Employers, I'm begging you, please stop firing union organizers. It's illegal. It's also a terrible union avoidance strategy because you're playing right into their hands.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Friday, April 29, 2022
WIRTW #623: the “blocked” edition
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Thursday, April 28, 2022
Series of promotions dooms gay brewery employee’s sex discrimination claim
Midland Brewing Company hired Ryan Boshaw to work as a server. Over the span of nine months, it promoted him three times, to an hourly managerial position, to floor leader, and ultimately to front-of-house operations manager (the second highest ranking position in the business).
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Wednesday, April 27, 2022
Labor unions are doing just fine without the NLRB’s help
Over the past decade, labor unions win between 65 and 70 percent of representation elections. Given organized labor's recent more high-profile victories, I expect that number to increase for 2022. So then why is the NLRB hellbent on helping unions win even more?
The NLRB's general counsel, Jennifer Abruzzo, recently filed a brief in a case pending before the Board, Cemex Construction Materials Pacific, asking it to overturn decades of well-established precedent on employers' rights in union organizing campaigns. Specifically, she seeks to:
- Ban "captive audience" meetings.
- Eliminate secret-ballot union elections by requiring employers to recognize and bargain in most cases upon the presentation of a majority number of signed authorization cards
- Prohibit an employer from providing employees legally correct information about how the employer-employee relationship might (will) change once they vote in a union to represent them.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Tuesday, April 26, 2022
Restaurant learns the hard way what an illegal tip pool looks like
Hard Eight BBQ says it misunderstood its obligations under the Fair Labor Standards Act by paying managers a share of tips earned by servers across the restaurant's five locations. As a result, following a Department of Labor investigation it reached a settlement with its managers totaling $867,572.
Matt Perry, COO of Hard Eight BBQ, told 5 NBCDFW that "managers were part of the tip pool at their five restaurants because they do the same jobs as other hourly employees on any given shift and that because of that they felt like managers should also receive a small portion of the tip share."
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Monday, April 25, 2022
Mask mandates might be gone, but maskual harassment isn’t
Workplaces, state and local governments, and the CDC have relegated mask mandates to the dustbin of Covid history. But just because people are no longer required to wear masks anywhere doesn't mean that some people aren't choosing to do so on their own. The end of mask mandates, however, has not ended the culture wars that have surrounded mask for the past two-plus years.
According to a recent poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, 56% of Americans still favor mask mandates on planes, trains, and public transportation, 49% for workers who interact with the public in restaurants and other places, and also 49% for crowded public events. (My own poll on LinkedIn revealed a smaller 36% still in favor of mask mandates on planes and public transportation.)For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Friday, April 22, 2022
WIRTW #622: the “wings” edition
Ask anyone from Philadelphia (including me) about the city's best cheesesteak, and the names you will not hear mentioned are Pat's (its inventor) or Geno's. Yes, they famously hold court at the intersection of 9th and Passyunk in South Philly. They might be Philly's most famous cheesesteaks, but they are not the best (a title which, in my humble opinion, belongs to Tony Luke's … but that's a story for another day).
Does the same hold true for buffalo wings? The eponymous chicken wing was invented at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, New York. During her choir trip last weekend, Norah had the opportunity to visit the Anchor Bar. No, she didn't order wings for lunch, but she did sample one. What did she think?
Here's what I read the past week that I think you should be reading, too.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Wednesday, April 20, 2022
Your office might be open, but the bar should remain closed
As businesses work to settle employees into offices, some are pulling out the stops—literally, on kegs, casks and wine bottles—in an attempt to make workplaces seem cool. Sure, executives could simply order people to return to their cubicles, and some have, but many want their workers to come back and like it.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Tuesday, April 19, 2022
Harassment complaints don’t require a “perfect" response, just a “reasonable” one
Ronald Burns, a maintenance technician at Berry Global, was the victim of three instances of racial harassment over the span of 17 days.
- Burns found a piece of cardboard in his locker that read, "dance monkey." He complained to HR.
In response, HR spent several days reviewing security camera footage in an attempt to discovery the perpetrator, which it could not do. The plant manager also met with the entire shift and advised that such harassment would not be tolerated.
- Four days later Burns found a noose hanging from the lock on his locker. He again reported the harassment, this time to his supervisor and to the company's ethics hotline.
In response, the plant manager gave Burns the weekend off with pay. Pre- and post-shift walkthroughs of the locker room were also started to seek any offensive items. HR interviewed 19 employees but could not lock down a suspect. Finally, the company adjusted the cameras to offer better coverage.
- 13 days later, Burns found yet another piece of cardboard in his locker, but this time it read, "die n*****." He again reported it to harassment.
After reviewing more camera footage, the company narrowed its investigation to one suspect, present in the locker room prior to all three incidents. All employees were also re-interviewed, and the suspect was suspended without pay even though he could not be confirmed as the culprit. Finally, Burns was offered a transfer to a different shift, which he declined.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Monday, April 18, 2022
Jury awards $450,000 to employee fired over unwanted birthday party
Kevin Berling, a 10-month employee of Gravity Diagnostics, made a simple request of the manager of his office —"Please don't throw me a birthday party; I have an anxiety disorder."
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Friday, April 15, 2022
WIRTW #621: the “on the radio” edition
How do I know that labor unions are making raging comeback? Historically, my posts on unions, union organizing, and union avoidance would struggle on LinkedIn to break 1,000 views and would only garner a handful of likes and comments. Over the past few weeks, however, my posts on the dramatic and successful rise in union organizing have been viewed well over 100,000 times with hundreds upon hundreds of likes, comments, and shares. It's an issue that has raised passion on both sides.
How else do I know? Because my social and news feeds are full of stories about union organizing. I think I've read more stories about labor unions in the past 18 months than I did in the first two decades of my legal practice combined.
Yesterday, it was my pleasure to appear on Labor Relations Radio to discuss all of these issues. We covered the reasons for the rise in union organizing, why I'm anti-union (but pro-employee), the use of salts in the Amazon and Starbucks campaigns, and the NLRB's general counsel's Cemex brief, which calls for the NLRB to alter rules on mandatory card check recognition, the elimination of captive audience speeches, and other issues that will dramatically tilt the organizing playing field even more in favor of the unions than it already is.
You can listen here, or wherever you get your podcasts.
A huge thank you to Peter List for inviting me on his show.
Here's what I read the past week that I think you should be reading, too.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Thursday, April 14, 2022
Ohio enacts sweeping changes to state wage and hour laws
Beginning July 6, 2022, Ohio employers have a new set of rules under which to pay their employees.
SB 47 revamps Ohio's wage and hour statute to correct some major differences that have historically existed between it and the federal Fair Labor Standards Act.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Wednesday, April 13, 2022
Protected concerted activity is an opportunity to engage with your employees, not to retaliate against them
"Due to the 6.8% inflation rate, all US workers are entitled to at least a 6.8% pay adjustment. We have received reports of some ABUSIVE EMPLOYERS not providing these adjustments. If you have not received such a raise, please ask your employer why your PAY WAS CUT.""WHAT TO DO ON A BREAK TODAY: (1) Talk about your PAY. (2) Talk about your RIGHTS. (3) Begin ORGANIZING A UNION. GOOD employers are not afraid of these, but ABUSIVE ones are.""You have a protected LEGAL RIGHT to discuss your pay with your coworkers. This should be done on a regular basis to ensure that everyone is being paid fairly. It is ILLEGAL for your employer to punish your for doing this."
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Tuesday, April 12, 2022
“Salting” the wounds of labor organizing
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Monday, April 11, 2022
Why I’m anti-union
“Jon, why are you anti-union?”
I’ve received this question a lot lately. Between all of my posts about the need for all employers (including craft breweries) to pay attention to the recent wave of union organizing, and my philosophy of workplace management that focuses on positive culture and positive treatment of workers, many have asked why I oppose labor unions.
Let me explain.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Friday, April 8, 2022
WIRTW #620: the “straws” edition
Do you know? Non-plastic straws, such as those made of paper or plant material, can include wheat as a binder? Norah discovered this fact after we returned from our recent family Spring Break vacation to Hollywood, Florida. Her brother, Donovan, who has Celiac Disease, got glutened on our trip and we couldn’t figure out the source.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Thursday, April 7, 2022
Don’t confuse “tips” and “service charges” for hospitality employees
How often have you looked at you bill at a restaurant and have seen an added service fee? Do you think to yourself, "No need to tip; it's already been added to the bill."
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Wednesday, April 6, 2022
Are you an ally, or are you just afraid of being canceled?
I tell my students, "When you get these jobs that you have been so brilliantly trained for, just remember that your real job is that if you are free, you need to free somebody else. If you have some power, then your job is to empower somebody else. This is not just a grab-bag candy game."
I think of this quote often when I think about what it means to be an ally at work.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Tuesday, April 5, 2022
Anti-union vs. Anti-worker
Tomorrow at 5 pm I'm participating in an online panel discussing fair compensation in the craft beer industry. It's part of the Craft Beer Professionals Spring Virtual Conference (register here).
Some members of the group, however, are objecting to my participation. They take issue with my recent posts about union organizing, and more specifically union organizing in the craft beer industry. They claim that "anti-union" (which I am) is the same as "anti-worker" (which I definitely am not). They argue that my anti-union views bar my seat at the fair compensation table — that I'm cannot opine on fair compensation because I'm anti-worker.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Monday, April 4, 2022
The biggest workplace story of 2022
Last Friday, workers won the first-ever union election at an Amazon warehouse (a fulfillment center in Staten Island, New York). This is the biggest workplace story of the year, and it won't even be close.
Here's why.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Friday, March 25, 2022
WIRTW #619: the “update” edition
To wrap things up this week, I thought I'd update two stories.
1/ UCLA Unpaid Job Posting
In addition to taking down the offensive job posting, UCLA tweeted this update.
Had UCLA included some of this reasonable explanation as part of its job posting, it could have avoided being excoriated online.
2/ Brienne Allan
Brienne, now of Brave Noise Beer, recently appeared on the Good Beer Hunting podcast to discuss what her year has been like since her Instagram post asking for stories about sexual harassment and gender discrimination in craft breweries went viral. It's a great listen. My takeaway (which will be fodder for a future post): Is your business an ally, or are you just afraid of being canceled?Here's what I read this past week that I think you should be reading, too.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Thursday, March 24, 2022
Starbucks employees are trying to “kick down the door” across the entire food and beverage service industry
Less than one and one-half miles away from the flagship Starbucks that launched a global coffee empire five decades ago, employees unanimously voted for their shop to unionize. It became the seventh such store to vote to unionize, joining five stores in Buffalo, New York, and one in Mesa, Arizona. Of the 157 (and rising) Starbucks currently organizing or planning to organize, only one thus far (also in Buffalo) has sided with management.
Pay careful attention to what the employees of the Seattle store that just went union told The Seattle Times in speaking about what this vote means for employees in the food and beverage service industry generally.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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Wednesday, March 23, 2022
The nuts and bolts of your company code of conduct
Yesterday I explained why your company needs a code of conduct separate from or adjunct to your already-existing anti-harassment policy.
Today, I'm back to explain what it should contain, to whom it should apply, how violations are addressed, and how it should be disseminated.
For more information, contact Jon at (440) 695-8044 or JHyman@Wickenslaw.com.
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