William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal
The Coddling of the American Worker's Mind: The Anti-Free Speech Nature of Popular Labor Law Reforms
Abstract
As the nation enters an era in which a new presidential administration will likely push such labor law reforms, it is worth considering whether transparently anti-free speech reform measures make sense for the future of labor policy and law. This Article argues that they do not. Because employee free choice is furthered, not diminished, by hearing both sides of an issue, American workers should have the opportunity to hear and evaluate employer speech in the course of union campaigns. Only then can employees make an informed decision about their workplace future. In the end, freedom of speech furthers employee freedom of choice—the NLRA’s statutory goal in union elections. For these reasons, many labor law reform proposals should be rejected and seen for what they are: an attempt to suppress a particular viewpoint in furtherance of unionization, without regard for employee freedom of choice or a free and fair debate.
This abstract has been taken from the author's introduction.