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posted by Fnord666 on Thursday December 19 2019, @05:02AM   Printer-friendly
from the labor-setback dept.

Employers can ban employees from using work email for personal purposes, including union organizing, the National Labor Relations Board ruled on Monday.
[...] Federal labor law protects employees' right to organize without interference from employers. That includes a limited right to engage in organizing activities in the workplace.
[...] Labor-rights advocates have long argued that this principle should extend to workplace email systems. They point out that email can be one of the most efficient ways for workers to contact one another and discuss workplace issues. And they note that the costs to employers from added email use is negligible.
[...] The latest ruling focuses on the casino operator Caesars Entertainment, which has broad policies prohibiting employees from using its email systems for personal use.
[...] The law merely requires that workers be given some reasonable means of communicating with one another, the board held. The law already protects the rights of workers to communicate via face-to-face conversations and the distribution of literature. That gives workers sufficient opportunities to communicate to satisfy the requirements of labor law, the board ruled.
[...] The board's lone Democrat, Lauren McFerran, dissented from the ruling, arguing that the majority had misinterpreted the law. She argued that property rights weren't relevant to the case because Caesars had already granted its employees access to the email system.

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2019/12/trump-administration-says-employers-can-ban-organizing-via-company-email/

Additional Source:

Shortly after Google staffers engaged in the largest mass walkout at any tech firm in the United States, the company quietly lobbied the National Labor Relations Board in the hopes it would roll back a decision that safeguarded the only way protesters were able to organize that action as quickly as they did: email. Unfortunately, Google's hope has become a reality.

https://gizmodo.com/disastrous-nlrb-ruling-adds-another-hurdle-for-tech-wor-1840491764

Previous Stories:
https://soylentnews.org/article.pl?sid=19/12/17/1948215
https://soylentnews.org/article.pl?sid=19/12/04/0029250
https://soylentnews.org/article.pl?sid=19/11/26/1411249


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  • (Score: 4, Interesting) by All Your Lawn Are Belong To Us on Thursday December 19 2019, @02:19PM (3 children)

    by All Your Lawn Are Belong To Us (6553) on Thursday December 19 2019, @02:19PM (#934204) Journal

    The right to organize wouldn't be the question here as I read it. It's the question of what resources may be used in trying to organize. Are leaflets OK? Assuming they are, that doesn't mean the employer has to let the employees use the company's paper and photocopier and printers to do so.

    A more interesting question would be: If employees have personal cell phones, should they be allowed to use them on company time to check for messages about organization? Alternately: Would company policies prohibiting personal device use during work hours constitute interference and harassment with organizing?

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  • (Score: 2) by PartTimeZombie on Thursday December 19 2019, @07:33PM (2 children)

    by PartTimeZombie (4827) on Thursday December 19 2019, @07:33PM (#934322)

    I think it is a question of the right to organise.

    Corporations are generally against the idea, and have the influence to put as many roadblocks in place as they can.

    • (Score: 2) by Reziac on Friday December 20 2019, @02:35AM (1 child)

      by Reziac (2489) on Friday December 20 2019, @02:35AM (#934482) Homepage

      How is it the employer's responsibility to help employees organize against them?

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