NLRB: ‘Merit’ in Some Charges Against Walmart Concerning Handling of Employee Protests

The general counsel of the National Labor Relations Board has found there is ‘merit’ to some charges filed against retail giant Wal Mart over its actions taken in response to employee protests in several states.

If the parties cannot reach a settlement of the allegations, complaints fill ensue, the General Counsel’s office said.

In particular, the general counsel found merit to allegations that:

• During two national television news broadcasts and in statements to employees at Walmart stores in California and Texas, Walmart unlawfully threatened employees with reprisal if they engaged in strikes and protests on November 22, 2012.
• Walmart stores in California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio, Texas and Washington unlawfully threatened, disciplined, and/or terminated employees for having engaged in legally protected strikes and protests.
• Walmart stores in California, Florida, Missouri and Texas unlawfully threatened, surveilled, disciplined, and/or terminated employees in anticipation of or in response to employees’ other protected concerted activities.

However, the general counsel found no merit in a set of other allegations against Walmart, including:

• Walmart stores in Illinois and Texas did not interfere with their employees’ right to strike by telling large groups of non-employee protestors to move from Walmart’s property to public property, pursuant to a lawful Solicitation and Distribution policy, where the groups contained only a small number of employees who either did not seek to stay on Walmart’s property or were permitted to remain without non-employee protesters.
• Walmart stores in California and Washington did not unlawfully change work schedules, disparately apply their policies, or otherwise coerce employees in retaliation for their exercise of statutory rights.

For more information from the NLRB’s announcement, click here.

This blog was highlighted in the Nov. 22 weekly round up for the Ohio Employer Law Blog.