NLRB orders Greater Omaha Packing to reinstate employees unlawfully fired for protesting their working conditions

On March 12, 2014, the Board (360 NLRB No. 62)  affirmed an NLRB administrative law judge’s earlier ruling that Greater Omaha Packing, a Nebraska-based meat processing and packaging plant, unlawfully discharged employees after they engaged in protected concerted activity.
In April 2012, a group of employees walked off the production line to protest the speed of the line and other working conditions, and thereafter met with the plant manager. That evening, the employees again met with the plant manager, to discuss their compensation and other matters. One month later, when the Employer learned that another work stoppage was planned, three employees were separately called into the office and dismissed. The employees filed a charge with the NLRB’s office in Overland Park, Kansas, which investigated and issued a complaint. An NLRB administrative law judge found that the Employer had unlawfully discharged the employees in retaliation for engaging in concerted protected activity.
The employer appealed the judge’s order, leading to the Board’s decision affirming the judge’s ruling and requiring the Employer to reinstate the employees with full backpay and benefits.