Taft-Hartley Act

The act defines union unfair labor practices, bans secondary boycotts and closed shops, and lets states pass right-to-work laws under Section 14(b). It lets the President seek a court injunction imposing an 80-day cooling-off period when a strike or lockout threatens national health or safety, a power used in the 2002 West Coast port lockout. It also created the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service and requires 60 days notice before ending a contract.

Taft-Hartley matters to logistics mainly as the emergency brake on port, trucking and warehouse labor disputes. Its 80-day injunction power is the tool Washington reaches for when a port strike or lockout threatens supply chains, which shapes how shippers plan around contract expirations. For example, during the 2002 West Coast lockout, President Bush used Taft-Hartley to reopen ports, and shippers still watch for it when ILA or ILWU contracts near expiration, such as before the 2024 East and Gulf Coast port strike.

• 2002 West Coast Port Lockout2002 · Employers lock out dockworkers at 29 ports for 11 days
• 2024 ILA Port Strike2024 · A three-day strike closes East and Gulf Coast ports
• 1971 to 1972 ILWU Strike1971–1972 · Dockworkers shut West Coast ports over container jobs

• National Labor Relations Act (NLRA)1935 · Federal law protecting private-sector union rights
• Railway Labor Act1926, extended to airlines 1936 · Federal labor law for railroads and airlines

1. NLRB: 1947 Taft-Hartley substantive provisions nlrb.gov
2. 29 U.S.C. Chapter 7, Subchapter III (Cornell LII) law.cornell.edu