Labor Law—May a Union Bargain Away an Employee's Right of Free Speech?—NLRB v. Gale Prods., 337 F.2d 390 (7th Cir. 1964)

Authors

Donald H. Bowman, University of Nebraska College of LawFollow

Abstract

The decision in NLRB v. Gale Products is of great importance in the context of the larger problem of protecting personal freedom in an industrial society. The court limited its inquiry to a determination of whether the employer had committed an unfair labor practice under the National Labor Relations Act and failed to deal with the more fundamental problem involved, namely, whether the union possessed power to bargain away an employee's constitutionally guaranteed right of free speech. The fundamental question raised, given these premises, is whether the nature of the collective bargaining system requires that certain restrictions be placed on an employee's right to express himself as an individual.

I. The Union-Legislature Analogy

II. Constitutional Limitations on Judicial Enforcement

III. Conclusion

Recommended Citation

Donald H. Bowman, Labor Law—May a Union Bargain Away an Employee's Right of Free Speech?—NLRB v. Gale Prods., 337 F.2d 390 (7th Cir. 1964), 44 Neb. L. Rev. 645 (1965)
Available at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/nlr/vol44/iss3/8