Supreme Court Hints at Green Lighting Suits Over Strike Damage

Both conservative and liberal US Supreme Court justices hinted that a forthcoming ruling would deal a blow to organized labor by allowing employers to sue unions in state court for alleged intentional destruction of property during a strike.

During oral argument Tuesday, the justices expressed skepticism about why federal labor law should treat allegations of intentional destruction of employer property during a strike the same as incidental economic harm from labor protests.

Chief Justice John Roberts pointed to the “difference between milk spoiling and killing the cow,” wondering why alleged vandalism should be analyzed under the National Labor Relations Board’s ...