WJCNY has reached a settlement agreement in the amount of $62,283, resolving The Matter of Goodness Gardens Inc. before the National Labor Relations Board. In its filing with the New York, NY Regional Office of the NLRB, two former employees charged Goodness Gardens with interfering, restraining, and coercing employees in the exercise of their rights guaranteed by the National Labor Relations Act.
The charge claims Goodness Gardens terminated, disciplined, and retaliated against employees who participated in protected concerted activities to try to improve their working conditions and address job-related problems. When an employee asked Goodness Gardens for a day off to accompany her child during dental surgery, she was told to choose between her child and her job. When she questioned the fairness of the denial she was terminated on the spot. Coworkers heard of the termination and frustrations with Goodness Gardens’ management, unfair scheduling practices, and routine rejections of leave requests reached a tipping point. The workforce decided to engage in an impromptu strike. Each employee lawfully stopped their work to demand answers from management. They humbly asked for fair working conditions and for their voices to be heard. Following lengthy discussions and numerous promises from management, employees returned to work feeling optimistic. That feeling was short-lived and, soon after, Goodness Gardens terminated the employees who were most active in the concerted activity.