How do solicitation activities interact with employees' right to unionize?

Under the National Labor Relations Act, employees have the right to organize into unions. The right to organize includes the right to solicit other employees-to recruit them or ask their support-and the right to distribute union cards, leaflets and other printed material. That right must also include a time and place for employees to engage in organizing activity.

The problem of union activity on company property raises two initial questions:

• To what extent can an employer control the use that is made of its physical premises?

• To what extent can an employer control the way its employees spend their time when they are at work?

Balancing employer and employee rights in the area of solicitation. On the one hand, an employer is entitled to the use of the property and labor it pays for. At the same time, employees are entitled to organize and schedule some of their activities where they work during the working day.

The two competing interests must be reasonably adjusted in determining the extent to which an employer can lawfully restrict union activity on its property. An unreasonable restriction on union activity amounts to an unlawful interference with employees' rights in violation of the NLRA. The kinds of restrictions most frequently arising are rules against solicitation and distribution of literature.