‘Old-school union busting’: how US corporations are quashing the new wave of organizing

Victories at several companies energized organizers, but hostile corporations - and an impotent labor board - stymie negotiations

US corporations have mounted a fierce counterattack against the union drives at Starbucks, Amazon and other companies, and in response, federal officials are working overtime to crack down on those corporations' illegal anti-union tactics - maneuvers that labor leaders fear could significantly drain the momentum behind today's surge of unionization.

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), the federal agency that polices labor-management relations, has accused Starbucks and Amazon of a slew of illegal anti-union practices, among them firing many workers in retaliation for backing a union. Nonetheless, many workplace experts question whether the NLRB's efforts, no matter how vigorous, can assure that workers have a fair shot at unionizing.