75% of Tornadoes and 70% of Billionaires are in the U.S.
Erika Rothenberg
Digital Print, 2024
Los Angeles, CA
97516
On Monday, SpaceX and Amazon appealed to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals that aspects of the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) enforcement procedures are unconstitutional. The National Labor Relations Board was founded by Congress in 1935 via the National Labor Relations Act (aka the Wagner Act). It is an independent agency of the federal government that has the authority to investigate and remedy unfair labor practices.
The lawsuit is in response to the NLRB’s complaints filed against both companies. Workers at Amazon and SpaceX have been organizing against labor abuse for years, and have experienced significant retaliation from their employers. At Amazon, the company refused to collectively bargain with the Amazon Labor Union. At SpaceX, employees were fired for speaking critically of CEO and founder Elon Musk. This attack on the NLRB is part of a larger movement of businesses pushing back against the NLRB’s policies defending workers.
The judges on Monday indicated they may dismiss the challenges to the NLRB due to the companies acting too quickly in their legal dispute. However, should these companies win their lawsuits, it will make it significantly more difficult for workers to form unions and take collective action. Trump is expected to replace the NLR's lead prosecutor with someone more sympathetic to employers. Furthermore, president-elect Donald Trump last week nominated Musk to co-lead a new commission focused on dismantling government agencies deemed unnecessary--whether the NLRB is one of them is yet to be seen.
CSPG’s poster of the week illustrates the powerfully destructive influence billionaires and corporate America hold over the lives of everyday people. These companies are headed by billionaires, and they control the lives of not only their workers, but of the local and global economies and environments. They plan for profit. We need a plan for the people.
Support for unions has soared in recent years. The bosses are scared–keep organizing!
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