National Labor Relations Board v. Erie Resistor Corp.

**What happened:** Erie Resistor Corporation faced a strike by its workers. During the strike, the company hired replacement workers to keep operations running. To encourage these replacement workers to stay and to attract more replacements, Erie Resistor gave them "superseniority" – meaning they would be placed ahead of striking workers on seniority lists, even workers who had been with the company much longer. The striking workers complained this was unfair and violated their rights under federal labor law. **What the court decided:** The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Erie Resistor. The Court said the company's decision to give superseniority to replacement workers was not an unfair labor practice. The justices determined that employers have legitimate business reasons for trying to maintain operations during strikes, and giving benefits to replacement workers serves that purpose. **Why this matters for workers:** This decision makes strikes riskier for workers. It allows employers to permanently disadvantage striking employees by giving replacement workers better seniority status. Workers considering strike action should understand that replacement workers might not only take their jobs temporarily, but could also gain permanent advantages in layoffs, recalls, and other seniority-based decisions. This ruling gives employers significant power to discourage strikes.