Social Workers and Labor Strikes
By Sherri Morgan, Associate Counsel, LDF and Office of Ethics & Professional Review and Carolyn I. Polowy, NASW
General Counsel
© January 2013. National Association of Social Workers. All rights reserved
Introduction
This article addresses ethical and legal implications for social workers who consider engaging in an organized work
stoppage as part of or in support of union action. It also considers situations where there may be the potential for
harm to clients where services are withheld in support of a union called strike.
Social Work Ethics and State Licensing Boards
The NASW Code of Ethics and state social work licensing laws are two crucial sources of standards for social
workers to review when contemplating an activity that may have a negative impact on clients. The professional
standards for licensed social workers are published by each state’s social work licensing board (e.g. Maryland Board
of Social Work Examiners, Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, etc.). Generally, state
licensing boards implement a core mission of protecting the public by assuring high standards of professional
practice. Activities that may have the effect of harming the public are suspect. For example, Illinois law (225 ILCS
20/19) indicates that disciplinary action may be taken for actions by licensees that are harmful to the public in a
manner defined by the rules of the social work licensing board.
It is noteworthy that many state social work boards have adopted the NASW Code of Ethics as a standard of conduct
for licensed social workers (in addition to the state’s own standards). The NASW Code of Ethics (2008) contains a
mix of provisions that address labor-management disputes without providing a bright line rule (see Reamer, F., 2006).
Standard 3.10(a) states, “Social workers may engage in organized action, including the formation of and participation
in labor unions, to improve services to clients and working conditions.” However, this is tempered by sub-section (b)
which references social work professional values and ethics and states, “Reasonable differences of opinion exist
among social workers concerning their primary obligation as professionals during an actual or threatened labor strike
or job action. Social workers should carefully examine relevant issues and their possible impact on clients before
deciding on a course of action.” Other provisions of the Code of Ethics point to social workers’ primary commitment
to clients’ interests (Standard 1.01), commitment to employers (Standard 3.09) and the need to engage in advocacy
to improve the general welfare of society (Standards 6.01 – 6.04).
Labor Laws – Federal and State
Legal rights regarding unionization and collective bargaining for employees of non-public employers that engage in
interstate commerce are primarily addressed by the federal National Labor Relations Act of 1935 (NLRA) (29 U.S. C.
§ 151), as amended. The NLRA guarantees the right of employees to strike while imposing some limitations and
qualifications on how the right may be exercised (NLRB, 1997, p. 3). Specific provisions have been provided for
labor disputes within the health care industry. Section 8(g) of the NLRA “prohibits a labor organization from engaging
in a strike, picketing, or other concerted refusal to work at any health care institution without first giving at least 10
days’ notice in writing to the institution and the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service” (see NLRB, 1997, p. 32).
If an impasse arises in negotiations regarding an existing collective bargaining agreement notice must be given to the
Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (29 U.S.C. § 158(d)(3)(A)) which may appoint a Board of Inquiry to
investigate and assist in resolving the dispute if “a threatened or actual strike or lockout affecting a health care
institution will… substantially interrupt the delivery of health care in the locality concerned…” (29 U.S.C. § 183). After
convening, the Board of Inquiry is to issue a “written report [which] shall contain the findings of fact together with the
Board's recommendations for settling the dispute, with the objective of achieving a prompt, peaceful and just
settlement of the dispute. Each such Board shall be composed of such number of individuals as the Director may
deem desirable. No member appointed under this section shall have any interest or involvement in the health care
institutions or the employee organizations involved in the dispute” (29 U.S.C. § 183).
Individual states’ laws may provide protections for public employees that have collective bargaining rights and these
may include provisions for situations where a strike could affect the public. For example, Illinois labor law provides a
mechanism for a public employer to petition the court in circumstances where a strike would present a clear and
imminent danger to the public (5 ILCS 315/18, 2013) and to make orders regarding specified categories of employees
for the protection of the public.
Analysis and Conclusions
The early history of the social work profession is replete with examples of labor organizing initiatives in support of
vulnerable workers through efforts of such notable individuals as Florence Kelley, Lillian Walk, Ellen Gates Starr,
Mary van Kleeck and Bertha Reynolds (Reisch, M., 2008). However, “Social work’s reliance on often rigid notions of
professionalism has historically been an obstacle to unionization” among social work employees (Karger, 2008).
Social workers may need to carefully weigh whether the short-term harm to clients from a contemplated strike will
“contribute to long-run improvements in … productivity and quality driven by union-related workplace improvement
initiatives” (Gruber and Kleiner, 2012; see also Reamer, F., 2006). When social workers engage in union activities on
their own behalf they are expected to do so in a professionally responsible manner so that work-stoppages may be
avoided if possible and/or to provide the legally-required notice so that dispute resolution mechanisms may be
employed to lessen the potential impact on clients or patients.
As these issues tend to be multi-layered and complicated in analysis and application, a careful review of legal and
other resources available is recommended before engaging in a work stoppage, as well as consultation with
appropriate professionals and documentation of any decision-making process.
References
Gruber, J. and Kleiner, S. (2012). "Do strikes kill? Evidence from New York State." American Economic Journal:
Economic Policy, 4(1):127, 155. Available at http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/71824.
225 ILCS 20/19 (2013). Available at
http://ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/ilcs3.asp?ActID=1295&ChapAct=225%C2%A0ILCS%C2%A020/&ChapterID=24&Chapt
erName=PROFESSIONS%2BAND%2BOCCUPATIONS&ActName=Clinical%2BSocial%2BWork%2Band%2BSocial
%2BWork%2BPractice%2BAct).
Karger, H. (2008). Unions. In T. Mizrahi & L. E. Davis (Eds.-in-Chief), Encyclopedia of social work (20th ed., Vol. 4,
pp. 249-251). Washington, DC and New York: NASW Press and Oxford University Press.
National Association of Social Workers (2008). NASW Code of Ethics. Washington, DC: Author. Available at
www.socialworkers.org/pubs/code/default.htm.
National Labor Relations Board (1997). Basic guide to the National Labor Relations Act,
General principles of law under the statute and procedures of the National Labor Relations Board. Available at
http://www.nlrb.gov/sites/default/files/documents/224/basicguide.pdf.
Reamer, F.G. (2006). Ethical standards in social work, A review of the NASW Code of Ethics (2nd ed.), 189 -191.
Washington, DC: NASW Press.
Reisch, M. (2008). Social movements. In T. Mizrahi & L. E. Davis (Eds.-in-Chief), Encyclopedia of social work (20th
ed., Vol. 4, p. 54). Washington, DC and New York: NASW Press and Oxford University Press.
29 U.S. C. § 151.
29 U.S.C. § 158(d)(3)(A).
29 U.S.C. § 183.
Resources
Arun, M. et al. (2011). The recent doctors’ strikes in India: A point of view, Medico-Legal Journal, 79(4): 129–134.
Available at http://eprints.manipal.edu/1894/1/Z-MLJ.pdf.
Baines, D. (2010). Neoliberal restructuring, activism/participation, and social unionism in the nonprofit social
services. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly 39:10-28.
Karger, H. (2009). Social workers and strikes in The Encyclopedia of Strikes in American History (eds., Aaron
Brenner, Benjamin Day, Immanuel Ness). M.E. Sharpe, Publisher.
Kurzman, P. A. (2009). Conclusion: Toward the future. Journal of Workplace Behavioral Health, 24(1,2): 281-284.
McKeown, M. (2009). Alliances in action: Opportunities and threats to solidarity between workers and service users in
health and social care disputes. Social Theory & Health 7: 148–169.
Rosenberg, J. and Rosenberg, S. (2006). Do unions matter? An examination of the historical and contemporary role
of labor unions in the social work profession. Social Work, 51(4): 295-302.
Rubinstein, M.H. (2009). A lawyer's worst nightmare: The story of a lawyer and his nurse clients who were both
criminally charged because the nurses resigned en mass. Northwestern Law Review Colloquy, 103:317. Available at
http://www.law.northwestern.edu/lawreview/Colloquy/2009/6/LRColl2009n6Rubinstein.pdf.
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