Re:Send Noncompete Agreements Back to the Middle Ages
by TheCoelacanth on Friday December 07, 2018 @02:11AM
(#18625708)
> I'm confused about the distinction. How can a worker be forced to join a union in the absence of an agreement between the company and the union to only hire union workers?
A worker can't be forced to join a union even in the presence of such an agreement. The company simply agreed not to hire them if they don't join.
Re:Send Noncompete Agreements Back to the Middle Ages
by vonmoltke on Friday December 07, 2018 @08:59AM
(#18627648)
I feel like you are playing semantics here. "Forced to join a union" in this discussion is in the context of "in order to get a job at Company X". Of course this worker is free to forego employment at Company X if they don't like the terms of the employment. However, one of those terms forces the worker to join a particular union.
Taken to its logical conclusion, this semantic distinction could be used to justify eliminating just about any worker protection currently on the books.
If you are thinking of "closed shops", companies where the union has a security agreement with the company and the union is free to deny membership to a person (thereby denying them employment), those were deemed illegal everywhere under US federal labor law.