The Technological Institute permits employees to use their work computers to send personal e-mail messages. The Institute also has a policy that prohibits any employee, whether or not a representative of the Union, from using the electronic mail to distribute any union literature or notice. Employees have sent personal email of jokes, poems and notices of community events, and on such topics as boredom, drugs, higher education, the IRS, mortality, philosophy, TV programs, religion, diseases, and words of wisdom. The Institute

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The policy prohibiting the distribution of union literature or notice through electronic mail could be seen as an interference with employees' rights to engage in concerted activity to improve their working conditions, which is protected under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). The fact that employees are allowed to use their work computers for personal email does not negate this potential violation. The Institute could be accused of interfering with, restraining, or coercing employees in the exercise of their rights under the NLRA by enacting this policy. Option A is incorrect because there is no evidence of discrimination in hiring or tenure to discourage union membership. Option B is incorrect because there is no mention of the Institute refusing to bargain with employee representatives. Option D is incorrect because although employers are allowed to promulgate and enforce no-solicitation rules, those rules cannot go so far as to infringe on employees' NLRA-protected rights.

The Technological Institute Permits Employees to Use Their Work Computers