United States labor law
Since the Civil Rights Act of 1964, all employing entities and labor unions have a duty to treat employees equally, without discrimination based on "race, color, religion, sex, or national origin." There are separate rules for sex discrimination in pay under the Equal Pay Act of 1963. Additional groups with "protected status" were added by the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. There is no federal law banning all sexual orientation or identity discrimination, but 22 states had passed laws by 2016. These equality laws generally prevent discrimination in hiring, terms of employment, and make discharge because of a protected characteristic unlawful. There is no federal law against unjust discharge, and most states also have no law with full protection against wrongful termination of employment. Collective agreements made by labor unions and some individual contracts require people are only discharged for a "just cause". The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1988 requires employing entities give 60 days notice if more than 50 or one third of the workforce may lose their jobs. Federal law has aimed to reach full employment through monetary policy and spending on infrastructure. Trade policy has attempted to put labor rights in international agreements, to ensure open markets in a global economy do not undermine fair and full employment.
Hoffman Plastic Compounds, Inc. v. NLRB
The National Labor Relations Act was first instituted by Senator Robert Wagner (D) of the state of New York in 1935. Senator Wagner submitted a bill to congress to eliminate unfair labor practices of businesses. The NLRA outlines benefits and rights of employees. One of the most important sections of the NLRA is section 7 which gives employees rights to organize labor unions without the fear of retaliation from their employer. Section 7 states, "Employees shall the right to self-organization, to form, join, or assist labor organizations, to bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing, and to engage in other concerted activities for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid and protection." The Wagner Act or National Labor Relations Act was used for the Nation Labor Relations Board, NLRB to bring the case to The Supreme Court with their determination based on the Wagner act was violated by Hoffman Plastics for firing Castro and others for contributing to the Union organizing at the plant. Section 7 entitles workers to organize, or join a Union if they are so desired. It is also protected under the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights in the Constitution of the United States Of America. There have been numerous cases brought to the courts by violators such as Walmart for firing employees for threats of employees organizing labor forces to better job benefits such as pay, medical insurance and paid time off. In 2002, the NLRB brought more than 40 cases to court regarding violations of section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act against Walmart.