U.S. Supreme Court Rules Against Union On Property-Damaging Strike
Teamsters' President O'Brien issues scathing rebuke, calling SCOTUS justices 'political hacks'
The U.S. Supreme Court has issued its long-awaited decision in Glacier Northwest v. Teamsters (in full here).
In the 8-1 decision, the high court overturned a lower ruling that found the National Labor Relations Act preempted a concrete company, Glacier Northwest, from bringing its lawsuit against the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, which represents the company’s truck drivers.
The case, which was prompted by a Teamsters local launching a strike that allegedly purposely damaged company property, is being considered a setback for unions.
“The Union’s actions not only resulted in the destruction of all the concrete Glacier had prepared that day; they also posed a risk of foreseeable, aggravated, and imminent harm to Glacier’s trucks. Because the Union took affirmative steps to endanger Glacier’s property rather than reasonable precautions to mitigate that risk, the NLRA does not arguably protect its conduct,” Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote for the majority, which included liberal Justices Kagan and Sotomayor.
Only Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented.
In response to the Court’s decision, Teamsters President Sean O’Brien issued a scathing press release, calling the Justices “political hacks” and the Court’s decision an attack on all U.S. workers’ right to strike.
"The political hacks at the Supreme Court have again voted in favor of corporations over working people. These corruptible justices should be ashamed of themselves for throwing out long-standing precedent and legislating from the bench. The ability to strike has been on the books for nearly 100 years, and it's no coincidence that this ruling is coming at a time when workers across the country are fed up and exercising their rights more and more. Make no mistake — this ruling has everything to do with giving companies more power to hobble workers if any attempt is made to fight back against a growing system of corruption.
"The Supreme Court is not upholding the law, nor is it advancing the American people. Supreme Court justices are ruling on behalf of billionaires alone — the very ones they socialize with at cocktail parties and who they owe their jobs to in the first place. American workers must remember that their right to strike has not been taken away. All workers, union and nonunion alike, will forever have the right to withhold their labor.
"The Teamsters will strike any employer, when necessary, no matter their size or the depth of their pockets. Unions will never be broken by this Court or any other. Today's shameful ruling is simply one more reminder that the American people cannot rely on their government or their courts to protect them.”
Read the full decision here.
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