Comparative Analysis: Employee Rights, Labor Policies, and Unions

This assignment delves into the distinctions between the rights of public and private sector employees, highlighting the restrictions and protections afforded to each. It then examines several pivotal national labor policies enacted with the formation of unions, including the Norris–LaGuardia Act, the Wagner Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Landrum-Griffin Act, and the Taft-Hartley Act, detailing their impacts on labor relations and worker rights. Finally, the assignment describes the origins of the American labor movement, emphasizing its role in advocating for improved working conditions, fair wages, and worker protections, and how these efforts fostered the growth of national unions. The analysis covers key legal and historical aspects of labor law, providing a comprehensive overview of the evolution of employee rights and labor practices in the United States.

1
Q 1. Discuss in detail how public employees’ rights generally differ from
those of private sector employees
The private sector employees mainly work for businesses or nonprofit
organizations. On the other hand, public-sector employers hire the
employees for performing official functions and public services like public
education, law enforcement and public safety. Due to the reason that
public-sector employees are government agencies certain rights are
available to the public sector employees that are not available to their
counterparts in the private sector (Mokyr, 200l). Public sector employees
have some restrictions on certain rights including the right to strike and the
right to speech so that the government agencies can fulfill their functions
and also due to the reason that generally these employees are in positions of
trust.
On the other hand, most of the private employees are "at - will" employees
and therefore, they can be fired due to any reason apart from the reason of
race, religion, gender, truthfully testifying in the court or for exercising the
rights that have been provided by statutes like the workers compensation.
On the other hand, generally employers from public-sector cannot
discipline, demote or remove their employees from work except if there is a
good cause present like dishonesty, the violation of work rules, poor

2
performance or misconduct (Sano and Williamson, 2008). If an employee
is "at will" depends on the fact if the employee has a contract for
guaranteed employment or employees covered by a law (particularly a
public-sector employee) which provides that the employer can be fired only
for a cause.
In this regard, the U.S. Constitution prevents only the governments and not
the businesses, organizations or private citizens from interfering with the
freedom of speech available to a person. As a result, generally the
employers from the private sector demote or fire the employees on the
basis of the views expressed by them on the other hand, the public sector
employees enjoy protection regarding the statements made by them as
citizens concerning the issues related Republicans on unless such speech
has hurt the ability of the government agency to function properly
(Yellowitz, 1989). In this regard the US Supreme Court has provided in
Garcetti v. Ceballos that the statements made by a government employee
are not protected by the First Amendment that have been made as a part of
the official job duties of employee.
Q 2. Several national labor policies were created with the establishment
of unions.
Most of the labor scholars approved the labor legislation that was
introduced after the 1930s even if there were some differences regarding
these legislations and in some cases, they have also expressed this

3
appointment regarding the administrative evaluation of these laws. Trade
unions also have a long history in the US. Therefore, even before the
Declaration of Independence, the skilled artisans coming from domestic
and handicraft industry had joined hands in benevolent societies, mainly for
the purpose of providing financial assistance to their members and their
families in case of serious illness, death or debt (Wright, 2011). Now the
impact of certain labor legislation is going to be discussed briefly.
The Norris–LaGuardia Act: this legislation had the effect of removing
some of the legal and judicial barriers that were present against organized
labor. This legislation is also called Anti-Injunction Bill. This federal law
was introduced in 1932 and it imposed a ban on yellow-dog contracts. It
also prohibited Federal courts from granting injunctions against the labor
disputes that were nonviolent and create a positive right of non-interference
by the employers against the employees who have joined the unions
(Marglioth, 1998). The common title was after the names of the sponsors of
this legislation, who were Sen. George W. Norris and Representative
Fiorello H. La Guardia, both of them were Republican's. It was provided by
this Act that yellow dog contracts cannot be imposed in federal court.
The Wagner Act restricts the employer's relations to the workers who have
created labor unions and are collectively aching in support of their
demands. This was a US federal law that was introduced in 1935. This
legislation limits the means that were available to the employees to act in
response to the personnel from private sector who have formed labor

4
unions, involved in collective bargaining and have taken part in strikes and
other activities in support of their demands. President Franklin D.
Roosevelt signed it into law. This law provided that private strikes are
illegal. The workers are required to make a formal request that National
Labor Relations Board should end its relationship with a trade union if they
feel that it is not particularly supportive of the workers before they can
strike lawfully.
Fair labor standards act: this legislation creates a national minimum wage,
"time and a half" for overtime in some of the jobs and some other related
provisions. This legislation also prohibits mostly the employment of minors
in "oppressive child labor". Therefore it provides that the children less than
the age of 18 cannot do some particularly dangerous jobs. Similarly
children under the age of 16 cannot work. As a result of this legislation,
nearly 700,000 workers were affected.
Landrum-Griffin Act: This was an act of 1959 of the US labor law. It is a
related the internal affairs and the relationships of the officials of trade
unions with the employers.
Taft-Hartley: the impact of the amendments enacted by Taft-Hartley is that
it having the list of prohibited actions or unfair labor practices for the
unions to the NLRA that earlier prohibited only the unfair labor practices
are part of the employers. Taft-Hartley barred wildcat strikes, jurisdictional
strikes, political or solidarity strikes, secondary and mass picketing,

5
monetary donations by unions to federal political movements and closed
shops.
Q 3. Describe the onset of the American labor movement, and explain
how it relates to the growth of national unions.
The rise of labor movement in the US was the result of the need for
protecting the common interests of the workers. The organized unions
worked for getting enhanced wages, safe working circumstances and
sensible workinghours for the workers who were butting in the industrial
sector. As a result of the efforts made by the labor union, child labor was
stopped, health benefits were given and aid was provided to the workers
who suffered injuries or retire from work.

6