NLRB v. General Electric Co.

After a strike by unionized employees of General Electric Company (GE) (defendant), GE developed a collective-bargaining strategy designed to make employees realize that GE, not solely the union, could be responsible for positive aspects of the employees’ work experience. The strategy entailed (1) studying employee desires, union demands, and market conditions so GE could make an attractive offer; (2) presenting a firm and fair offer to the union and letting the union know that GE would not deviate unless the offer was somehow factually mistaken (i.e., a take-it-or-leave-it approach); and (3) marketing the offer directly to employees and the public to win support for the offer. The union called a national strike in 1960 to protest GE’s strategy, but the union capitulated three weeks later. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) (plaintiff) found that GE had violated the National Labor Relations Act during the strike by unilaterally changing some employment terms, bargaining with local union officials instead of national union representatives, and refusing to supply the union with information. The NLRB also found that GE’s general bargaining strategy violated the requirement in § 8(a)(5) of the act that employers must bargain with their employees’ chosen union in good faith. The NLRB found that GE’s bargaining strategy was designed to diminish the union’s status to its members and the public. Specifically, the NLRB concluded that GE’s take-it-or-leave-it approach was meant to show employees that the union was powerless and useless. The NLRB also found that GE had failed to negotiate fully with the union, had refused to disclose cost information to the union, and had taken untenable positions on certain matters with no purpose besides simply refusing to yield to union pressure. GE petitioned to set aside the NLRB’s order, contending, among other things, that GE had made some concessions during negotiations, including letting the union choose between a vacation or a wage increase and letting the union make changes to clarify the pension plan. The NLRB cross-petitioned for enforcement of the order.