Coronavirus-related protests about pay, working conditions may be protected activity

During the COVID-19 outbreak, many employees in essential lines of work have begun seeking increased “hazard” pay and enhanced personal protective equipment (PPE). We’ve seen reports of informational picketing and ministrikes by healthcare workers over what they say are unsafe working conditions, such as the lack of high-grade masks and other safety equipment. Among the whirl of information and issues arising from the coronavirus, it’s important to remember many of the demands and forms of protest constitute “concerted activity” protected by federal labor law.

Many workers facing heightened risk of illness

The coronavirus sweeping the world has led many states, including Ohio, to issue stay-at-home orders, requiring nonessential businesses to shutter or implement telework. Despite the restrictions, companies considered to be “essential” are operating as usual.

Essential employees such as grocery store workers, pharmacists, nursing home staff, and first responders are at a heightened risk of illness, given the frequency of their face-to-face interactions with the public. For other essential employees, such as medical professionals, their contacts are almost guaranteed to include interfaces with people suffering from COVID-19.

Even when the country begins to open up again, the coronavirus will still be out there, and many employees will want heightened protection standards for their workplaces.

Concerted activity implicates the NLRA