Labor Law & Union Rights
Understand Your Workplace Rights
Organizing a union with your co-workers is a fundamental right recognized by U.S. labor law, and it is even affirmed in the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights. However, employers often resist their employees' efforts to organize, as they prefer to maintain control over the employment relationship. Some employers may regularly violate labor laws during organization efforts, while others may approach the legal boundaries to deter unionization. Therefore, it is crucial to understand your right to organize.
Your Rights Under the National Labor Relations Act
You have the right to:
Join a union.
Discuss union organization with your co-workers.
Distribute literature promoting union membership in non-work areas during non-work hours.
Gather signatures from your co-workers on petitions in non-work areas and during non-work times.
Collaborate with your co-workers to form a union.
Work together with your co-workers to improve working conditions at your workplace.
Employer Restrictions
Under the National Labor Relations Act, your employer cannot:
Interfere with, restrain, or coerce you in ways that prevent you from exercising the rights listed above.
Create a union that is financed or controlled by the employer rather than by you and your co-workers.
Discriminate against you or your co-workers in hiring or firing based on your decision to join (or not join) a union.
Terminate you for exercising any of your rights under the National Labor Relations Act, including filing complaints or testifying against your employer for rights violations.
Refuse to engage in collective bargaining with you and your co-workers if you decide to form a union.
It’s important to note that the NLRA applies to most private-sector workers, but not to everyone. Public-sector employees—such as school staff, county social workers, and firefighters—are governed by specific state laws. Additionally, some workers, including independent contractors, supervisors, and managers, are entirely excluded from labor law protections.
Beyond the right to organize a union, you also possess various rights at work under laws such as the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Occupational Safety and Health Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and different civil rights statutes. Our office can effectively address any questions which may invoke litigation. If you have a potential dispute, please fill out the following form below.
