A recent federal court case from the Eighth Circuit illustrates an employer’s obligations when facing a union “salting” campaign. “Salts” are union members who seek to be hired by non-union employers in order to attempt to organize the employer’s worksite.
Briefly, the recent case involved an agency that placed electricians onsite at client construction locations. Four salts submitted resumes which included a statement indicating that the individual was active in the IBEW (International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Union) and sought to organize worksites for the IBEW. The agency did not place any of the four salts, although it did place many other electricians during the same time period.
The court agreed with the National Labor Relations Board that the employer agency violated the National Labor Relations Act by not hiring the salts based on anti-union animus.
This case involved one of the many federal laws with which employers must comply.