Everyone has the right to free speech. That includes unions, workers, and business owners. So when a union wants a business’s employees to unionize, it has the right to make its case to them, the employees have the right to discuss it among themselves, and their employer has the right to tell employees why a union might not be beneficial. That’s long been the law in the United States—not only under the First Amendment, but also under the National Labor Relations Act, which specifically protects employers’ right to talk to their employees about unions.
But Jennifer Abruzzo—the General Counsel for the National Labor Relations Board appointed by President Biden—says she’s changing that. Soon after taking her new job, Abruzzo issued a memo announcing that the NLRB will now consider it illegal for employers to talk to employees about unions at mandatory meetings—which they had always been allowed to do. That threat means employers will now keep their mouths shut if they want to avoid legal consequences.
The Liberty Justice Center has sued Abruzzo to challenge this violation of employers’ free-speech rights. LJC filed the case on behalf of Associated Builders and Contractors of Michigan, a statewide trade association that represents businesses in the construction industry that believe in fair and open competition, free enterprise, workers’ freedom to choose whether to be part of a union or its training programs, balanced budgets, a fair taxation structure, and reasonable regulation.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan, argues that Abruzzo’s new policy violates both the First Amendment and the NLRA.
Buck Dougherty is a Senior Counsel at the Liberty Justice Center, where he litigates in trial and appellate courts on behalf of everyday citizens in order to protect their civil liberties and preserve their constitutional rights.
Noelle Daniel is a staff attorney at Liberty Justice Center where she assists in cases to protect the rights to free speech, economic liberty, private property, and other Constitutional rights in courts across the country.
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