More Lockouts As Companies Battle Unions
Many Americans know about the highly publicized lockouts in professional sports ? like last year?s 130-day lockout by the National Football League and the 161-day lockout by the National Basketball Association ? but lockouts, once a rarity, have been used in less visible industries as well.?This is a sign of increased employer militancy,? said Gary Chaison, a professor of industrial relations at Clark University. ?Lockouts were once so rare they were almost unheard of. Now, not only are employers increasingly on the offensive and trying to call the shots in bargaining, but they?re backing that up with action ? in the form of lockouts.?
