How Protected Concerted Activity Works in California
Protected concerted activity cases may involve unlawful termination. Here’s what you need to know about protected concerted activity in California.
Protected concerted activity deals with employees’ rights to discuss and take action in order to improve working conditions. In California, the NLRA deals with cases involving protected concerted activity.
What is protected concerted activity under the NLRA?
Protected concerted activity is the right for individuals to express opinions about their employer and workplace to fellow employees without facing employer retaliation. Some clauses in the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) clarify that an employee can organize, form, join, or assist with labor organizations and other actions for the mutual benefit of fellow employees. For example, an employer cannot interfere with or coerce employees not to exercise their right to discuss wages and working conditions with their fellow employees.
If an employee has issues with anything pertaining to their workplace, then they have the right to discuss that and act upon it with other co-workers. Examples of discussing and acting upon issues are:
- Circulating petitions about wages or hours
- Participating in protesting against unsafe or unsanitary conditions
- Talking directly to an employer about problems they have with their workplace
Upper management cannot, in turn, do anything that can be construed as “retaliation”. Retaliation is also a spectrum of negative actions from an employer including termination, disciplinary action, threats, or coercion. It is relevant to mention that if an employee is knowingly slandering their workplace without sufficient evidence, this is not protected concerted activity and can be considered malicious.
Related: How to Report Retaliation in the Workplace
Examples of Protected Concerted Activity in California
The Gentle Barn (Non-Profit Animal Sanctuary) – Santa Clarita, California
One example of protected concerted activity in California includes a case in which two employees at The Gentle Barn were fired after making allegations about the founder of their non-profit animal sanctuary being aggressive and verbally abusive to several executives. They then filed charges against the Los Angeles regional office because they believed that they had been wrongly fired, especially considering their original allegations were only uncovered by surveillance footage of their private conversations. They believed their employment termination was unlawful as they were engaging in what should have been protected concerted activity. Before the case could continue, the two employees and The Gentle Barn came to a settlement which ultimately resolved the situation.
Vegetable Packing Plant – Monterey, California
Another example of protected concerted activity in California includes a case in which a longstanding technician at a vegetable packing plant expressed his concerns for the safety of other employees to both the company’s management and a government agency. As a consequence, he was fired shortly afterward. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) then filed a complaint regarding this firing of the technician, claiming it was unlawful because he only engaged in protected activity. The case was able to be settled prior to a hearing, and the technician got rehired with some financial compensation included.
Do supervisors have a right to engage in protected concerted activity?
In the private sector, most employees are under the umbrella of the NLRA. The following groups of people, however, are not included in the NRLA: agricultural laborers, independent contractors, supervisors, and government employees. Although most employees in the private sector are thought to be covered in the NRLA, not all of them are. The act specifically excludes certain individuals such as:
- Federal, state, or local government entities
- Workers in agricultural divisions
- Domestic workers
- Those employed by any company or organization subject to the Railway Labor Act, such as airlines
- Individuals working for their family
- Anyone else working for a company or organization that is not stated as an employer by the NLRA
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