LABOR LAW-LEGALITY OF EMPLOYER'S USE OF LOCKOUT

One of the employer's traditional weapons against the economic power of unions is the lockout. Since the central economic element involved in strikebreaking is that the operation of the plant and equipment is as important to labor as labor is to the operation of the plant and equipment, the lockout is one of the simplest methods of strikebreaking or of resisting union demands. This is so because in the endurance contest which ensues the economic resources of the employer are likely to be greater than those of the employee. Just as there are restrictions on union use of the strike, however, so are there restrictions on employer use of the lockout, which has been called the employer's counterpart of the strike.

The purpose of this comment is to explore the question of when the employer can use the lockout or related devices without committing an unfair labor practice under the Labor Management Relations Act and without committing an actionable wrong at law or equity.