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THE NORRIS-LA GUARDIA (ANTI-INJUNCTION)

ACT

Act of March 23, 1932, 47 Stat. 70; 62 Stat. 991 (1948); 63 Stat. 107 (1949) 29 U.S.C. §§ 101-15; F.C.A. 29 §§ 101-15

Summary and Description

The Anti-Injunction Act declares it to be a public policy that the worker shall have full freedom of association, self-organization, and designation of representatives of his own choosing to negotiate the terms and conditions of his employment, free from employer interference in these or other concerted activities for mutual aid or protection.

The act defines and limits the powers of the Federal courts to issue injunctions in labor disputes, in conformity with this policy.

YELLOW-DOG CONTRACTS

Employment contracts whereby a worker agrees not to join a union, or to resign if he is a union member (yellow-dog contracts), are declared contrary to public policy and unenforceable in Federal

courts.

WHEN INJUNCTIONS MAY NOT BE ISSUED

No Federal court may issue an injunction, temporary or permanent, in any case involving or growing out of a labor dispute, to prohibit any individual worker or group of workers acting in concert from doing any of the following acts, except as modified by the LaborManagement Relations Act.

1. Ceasing or refusing to work.

2. Joining or continuing membership in a union.

3. Aiding or refusing to aid financially or by other lawful means any person participating in or interested in a labor dispute. 4. Giving publicity to the existence of or the facts involved in any labor dispute whether by advertising, speaking, patrolling, or by any other method not involving fraud or violence.

5. Assembling peaceably to act or to organize to act in promotion of their interests in a labor dispute.

6. Advising or notifying any person of intent to do any of the above, agreeing or refusing to do any of the above, or inducing others to do any of the above acts, without fraud or violence. The act defines a labor dispute as any dispute over terms and conditions of employment or matters of employee representation in collective bargaining, even though the persons involved are not in the relation of employer and employee.

WHEN INJUNCTIONS MAY BE ISSUED

Except as otherwise indicated below, a Federal court may issue a temporary or permanent injunction in cases involving or growing out of a labor dispute only after hearing the testimony of witnesses in open court with opportunity for cross-examination. Such hearings shall be held only after personal notice to all known persons involved including the public officers responsible for protecting the complainant's property.

The court must also find that:

1. Unlawful acts have been threatened and will be committed unless restrained or have been committed and will be continued unless restrained;

2. Substantial and irreparable property damage will follow; 3. Greater injury will result to the complainant from denying the injunction than to the defendant from granting it;

4. The complainant has no adequate remedy at law;

5. Public officers are unable or unwilling to furnish adequate protection;

6. The complainant has complied with every legal obligation involved in the dispute and has made every reasonable effort to settle the dispute by negotiation or with the aid of available governmental machinery.

The injunction or temporary restraining order may be issued only against the person or persons, association, or organization making the threat or committing the unlawful act or actually authorizing or ratifying the act.

Exception

Under special circumstances a Federal court may issue a temporary restraining order for a maximum of 5 days without an open court hearing, on the basis of sworn testimony sufficient to sustain a temporary injunction issued on hearing after notice, and on condition that the complainant posts a bond.

ISSUANCE OF INJUNCTIONS IN SPECIAL CASES

Temporary or permanent injunctions may be issued by Federal courts without regard to the above provisions of the act, even though a labor dispute may exist, in the following instances: (1) Where an injunction is properly sought by the National Labor Relations Board pending the determination of an unfair labor practice proceeding, (2) in cases where the Board seeks to enforce an order issued by it or an aggrieved party desires to contest the Board's order, or (3) where, in the case of a threatened or actual strike affecting an industry engaged in interstate commerce which would imperil the national health or safety, the Attorney General of the United States requests an injunction. The act does not affect the jurisdiction of Federal courts to issue injunctions in labor disputes between the United States and its employees.

Text of Act

(Section numbers refer to the act, not to the United States Code)

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That no court of the United States, as herein defined, shall have jurisdiction to issue any restraining order or temporary or permanent injunction in a case involving or growing out of a labor dispute, except in strict conformity with the provisions of this Act; nor shall any such restraining order or temporary or permanent injunction be issued contrary to the public policy declared in this Act.

SEC. 2. In the interpretation of this Act and in determining the jurisdiction and authority of the courts of the United States, as such jurisdiction and authority are herein defined and limited, the public policy of the United States is hereby declared as follows:

Whereas under prevailing economic conditions, developed with the aid of governmental authority for owners of property to organize in the corporate and other forms of ownership association, the individual unorganized worker is commonly helpless to exercise actual liberty of contract and to protect his freedom of labor, and thereby to obtain acceptable terms and conditions of employment, wherefore though he should be free to decline to associate with his fellows, it is necessary that he have full freedom of association, self-organization, and designation of representatives of his own choosing, to negotiate the terms and conditions of his employment, and that he shall be free from the interference restraint, or coercion of employers of labor, or their agents, in the designation of such representatives or in self-organization or in other concerted activities for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid or protection; therefore, the following definitions of, and limitations upon, the jurisdiction and authority of the courts of the United States are hereby enacted.

SEC. 3. Any undertaking or promise, such as is described in this section, or any other undertaking or promise in conflict with the public policy declared in section 2 of this Act, is hereby declared to be contrary to the public policy of the United States, shall not be enforceable in any court of the United States and shall not afford any basis for the granting of legal or equitable relief by any such court, including specifically the following:

Every undertaking or promise hereafter made, whether written or oral, express or implied, constituting or contained in any contract or agreement of hiring or employment between any individual, firm, company, association, or corporation, and any employee or prospective employee of the same, whereby

(a) Either party to such contract or agreement undertakes or promises not to join, become, or remain a member of any labor organization or of any employer organization; or

(b) Either party to such contract or agreement undertakes or promises that he will withdraw from an employment relation in

the event that he joins, becomes, or remains a member of any labor organization or of any employer organization.

SEC. 4. No court of the United States shall have jurisdiction to issue any restraining order or temporary or permanent injunction in any case involving or growing out of any labor dispute to prohibit any person or persons participating or interested in such dispute (as these terms are herein defined), from doing, whether singly or in concert, any of the following acts:

(a) Ceasing or refusing to perform any work or to remain in any relation of employment;

(b) Becoming or remaining a member of any labor organization or of any employer organization, regardless of any such undertaking or promise as is described in section 3 of this Act;

(c) Paying or giving to, or withholding from, any person participating or interested in such labor dispute, any strike or unemployment benefits or insurance, or other moneys or things of value;

(d) By all lawful means aiding any person participating or interested in any labor dispute who is being proceeded against in, or is prosecuting, any action or suit in any court of the United States or of any state;

(e) Giving publicity to the existence of, or the facts involved in, any labor dispute, whether by advertising, speaking, patrolling, or by any other method not involving fraud or violence;

(f) Assembling peaceably to act or to organize to act in promotion of their interests in a labor dispute;

(g) Advising or notifying any person of an intention to do any of the acts heretofore specified;

(h) Agreeing with other persons to do or not to do any of the acts heretofore specified; and

(i) Advising, urging, or otherwise causing or inducing without fraud or violence the acts heretofore specified, regardless of any such undertaking or promise as is described in section 3 of this Act.

SEC. 5. No court of the United States shall have jurisdiction to issue a restraining order or temporary or permanent injunction upon the ground that any of the persons participating or interested in a labor dispute constitute or are engaged in an unlawful combination or conspiracy because of the doing in concert of the acts enumerated in section 4 of this Act.

SEC. 6. No officer or member of any association or organization, and no association or organization participating or interested in a labor dispute, shall be held responsible or liable in any court of the United States for the unlawful acts of individual officers, members, or agents, except upon clear proof of actual participation in, or actual authorization of, such acts, or of ratification of such acts after actual knowledge thereof.

SEC. 7. No court of the United States shall have jurisdiction to issue a temporary or permanent injunction in any case involving or growing out of a labor dispute, as herein defined, except after hearing the testimony of witnesses in open court (with opportunity for cross-examination), in support of the allegations of a complaint made under

oath, and testimony in opposition thereto, if offered, and except after findings of fact by the court, to the effect

(a) That unlawful acts have been threatened and will be committed unless restrained or have been committed and will be continued unless restrained, but no injunction or temporary restraining order shall be issued on account of any threat or unlawful act excepting against the person or persons, association, or organization making the threat or committing the unlawful act or actually authorizing or ratifying the same after actual knowledge thereof;

(b) That substantial and irreparable injury to complainant's property will follow:

(c) That as to each item of relief granted greater injury will be inflicted upon complainant by the denial of relief than will be inflicted upon defendants by the granting of relief;

(d) That complainant has no adequate remedy at law; and (e) That the public officers charged with the duty to protect complainant's property are unable or unwilling to furnish adequate protection.

Such hearing shall be held after due and personal notice thereof has been given, in such manner as the court shall direct, to all known persons against whom relief is sought, and also to the chief of those public officials of the county and city within which the unlawful acts have been threatened or committed charged with the duty to protect complainant's property: Provided, however, That if a complainant shall also allege that, unless a temporary restraining order shall be issued without notice, a substantial and irreparable injury to complainant's property will be unavoidable, such a temporary restraining order may be issued upon testimony under oath, sufficient, if sustained, to justify the court in issuing a temporary injunction upon a hearing after notice. Such temporary restraining order shall be effective for no longer than five days and shall become void at the expiration of said five days. No temporary restraining order or temporary injunction shall be issued except on condition that complainant shall first file an undertaking with adequate security in an amount to be fixed by the court sufficient to recompense those enjoined for any loss, expense, or damage caused by the improvident or erroneous issuance of such order or injunction, including all reasonable costs (together with a reasonable attorney's fee), and expense of defense against the order or against the granting of any injunctive relief sought in the same proceeding and subsequently denied by the court.

The undertaking herein mentioned shall be understood to signify an agreement entered into by the complainant and the surety upon which a decree may be rendered in the same suit or proceeding against said complainant and surety, upon a hearing to assess damages of which hearing complainant and surety shall have reasonable notice, the said complainant and surety submitting themselves to the jurisdiction of the court for that purpose. But nothing herein contained shall deprive any party having a claim or cause of action under or upon such undertaking from electing to pursue his ordinary remedy by suit at law or in equity.

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