Don’t file criminal charges against employees who’ve engaged in protected activity

Friedrich Nietzsche once said, "It is impossible to suffer without making someone pay for it; every complaint already contains revenge." Employment, however, is no place for revenge. 

Consider, for example, this hypothetical. The chief executive of BrewDog, James Watt, recently filed criminal charges against Emili Ziem, claiming that she provided false information about the person responsible for making malicious comments about Watt on social media. This comes on heels of the brewery using the EU's data privacy laws to unmask the identity of anonymous harassment complainants. 

Let's assume (although I don't believe it to be the case) that Ziem is one of the unmasked harassment complainants. Do the criminal charges filed against her by her former boss constitute unlawful retaliation under our workplace discrimination laws? 

The answer is a qualified "yes."

The NLRB is coming for your handbook (again)

• Corrective action rules
• A dress code
• A prohibition on cell phone use while working
• A social media policy
• Confidentiality rules

These are a few of the 19 different polices contained in Starbucks  employee handbook (called its Partner Guide), which the NLRB alleges constitute "interfering with, restraining, and coercing employees in the exercise" of the right of the coffee retailer's employees to form a union under the National Labor Relations Act.

WIRTW #624: the “it’s snot okay” edition

Earlier this week our country officially passed 1 million Covid-19 deaths. According to the World Health Organization, Covid's full death toll is three times higher than officially reported.

Whether the actual number is 1 million or 3 million, it's an awful milestone and a grim reminder that Covid is still out there, mutating and circulating in the community. Indeed, Covid numbers are rising nationwide, with some counties and even entire states moving back into the "high transmission" category after a short restbite. 

You'd think after two-plus years of pandemic living, people would know the rules of Covid-19 road. For example, the importance of practicing good hygiene habits and not sneezing directly into the palm of your hand. 

Some people, however, appear not to have received this message. For example, consider the cashier at a local Skechers store that Norah and I visited last weekend. All we wanted to do was buy her a pair of comfortable shoes to wear to her new job. Instead, we got this nasty encounter.

🤧 💦 🖐️ 🦠 😳 🤢 

Here's what I read this past week that I think you should be reading, too.

Why are labor unions are having their moment?

Yesterday I shared about the moment labor unions are currently having, with representation petitions surging 57% over the past six months, and 625% in the hospitality and food service industry over the past decade. 

The question is why. 

To be sure, toxic management, poor workplace culture, and low wages are a factor. But they are a factor anytime a labor union takes hold in a workplace. I'm looking for the reasons our current labor movement is having its moment in time.

Here are my thoughts.

If it feels like labor unions are having their moment, it’s because they absolutely are

Union representation petitions are surging. According to the National Labor Relations Board, they have increased a whopping 57% over the past six months.

Even more astounding is just how many of these petitions are in hospitality and food service industry. According to an NPR analysis, 27.5% of all union election petitions filed thus far this year come from that market segment. Compare that to just a decade ago when the number was a scant 3.8%. That's nearly a 625% increase. 

What was your worst job ever?

The year was 1989. It was the summer between my junior and senior years in high school. I worked as a busboy in the dining room of an assisted living facility. It paid $7 an hour, which was a great wage 33 years ago. 

Clearing tables, however, wasn't the only job duty. Part of my job was to "drive" non-ambulatory residents from their apartments to the dining room for dinner. One resident in particular — who, in hindsight, almost certainly suffered from some form of dementia — would answer her door completely nude. But that wasn't what made that summer job my worst job ever.

I’m begging you, STOP firing union organizers

Brenda Garcia led union efforts at Chipotle as one of its employees. Or, rather, she was one of its employees until last week, when the restaurant chain fired her. 

Employers, I'm begging you, please stop firing union organizers. It's illegal. It's also a terrible union avoidance strategy because you're playing right into their hands.