DEFENSE · 29usc158:same-decision
Judge/Board-made burden structure anchored to the purpose hook, not words of the statute. Applies only after the General Counsel proves the initial unlawful-motivation case.
Exact element source
to encourage or discourage membership in any labor organizationSource:
docroot/ir/usc/title29.jsonl#title29_sec158; Unicode character offsets [739:802] (end exclusive); SHA-256 caadb20cedf4fd4e200812fc0ec46617cc7978ef7a6b0a30e355bccfeb7e0d06.All variants
| Variant | Description | Merits instance blocks | Distinct cases | Example cases (up to 3 per group) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| business-rationale/past-crane-sales-without-discharges | 1 Satisfied 0; not satisfied 1; excluded context 0 | 1 | /f3d/929/0393-01 — United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · 2019 — not | |
| credibility/discredited-sleeping-on-duty-account | 1 Satisfied 0; not satisfied 1; excluded context 0 | 1 | /f3d/916/1095-01 — Court of Appeals of the District of Columbia · 2019 — not |
How courts decided this element
| Case | Element | Holding and scope | Variant | Exact source quotations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| /f3d/916/1095-01 — Court of Appeals of the District of Columbia · 2019 | Same action absent unlawful motive | not Counted merits instance applied / merits basis: proved; claim: (a); party: Station 4 employees; subject: party=Station 4 employees The defense fails following actual credibility findings, affirmed on review. This is not a demand that the employer prove no antiunion sentiment before the General Counsel’s first-stage showing. | credibility/discredited-sleeping-on-duty-account | Novato proffers no other evidence that Brown and Sabelino were sleeping longer than their permitted break times and no other evidence that Metellus and Bernales were sleeping at all.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/f3d_916.jsonl#/f3d/916/1095-01; Unicode character offsets [22785:22967] (end exclusive); SHA-256 619b4737a25b3eff7f5171fe7092f24823bff6f7ac6a4f4f000ee78df3a3dcc2.Given the absence of such evidence, combined with the contrary testimony that the ALJ reasonably credited, we find nothing unreasonable in the Board's conclusion that Novato failed to meet its burden of showing it would have fired the four employees notwithstanding its anti-union animus.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/f3d_916.jsonl#/f3d/916/1095-01; Unicode character offsets [22968:23256] (end exclusive); SHA-256 619b4737a25b3eff7f5171fe7092f24823bff6f7ac6a4f4f000ee78df3a3dcc2. |
| /f3d/929/0393-01 — United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · 2019 | Same action absent unlawful motive | not Counted merits instance applied / merits basis: proved; claim: (a) The court sustains the Board’s rejection of the claimed business-only reason, using comparative history and contemporaneous statements. | business-rationale/past-crane-sales-without-discharges | Yet until then he had never fired a crane operator.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/f3d_929.jsonl#/f3d/929/0393-01; Unicode character offsets [12678:12729] (end exclusive); SHA-256 859f942fccda81455b75cdf787d5a7c40e108f8f20c84015167835c1180ed92b.Making matters harder to justify, Erickson said that he would reverse his decision if the Local changed its ways.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/f3d_929.jsonl#/f3d/929/0393-01; Unicode character offsets [11782:11895] (end exclusive); SHA-256 859f942fccda81455b75cdf787d5a7c40e108f8f20c84015167835c1180ed92b.We disagree. The conclusion was a reasonable one on this record.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/f3d_929.jsonl#/f3d/929/0393-01; Unicode character offsets [10823:10887] (end exclusive); SHA-256 859f942fccda81455b75cdf787d5a7c40e108f8f20c84015167835c1180ed92b. |
Court interpretations
interpretation
"Once a prima facie case has been established, the burden [of persuasion] shifts to the company to show that it would have taken the same action in the absence of the unlawful motive."
/f3d/916/1095-01 — Court of Appeals of the District of Columbia · 2019
"Once a prima facie case has been established, the burden [of persuasion] shifts to the company to show that it would have taken the same action in the absence of the unlawful motive."Source:
docroot/ir/caselaw/f3d_916.jsonl#/f3d/916/1095-01; Unicode character offsets [9569:9753] (end exclusive); SHA-256 619b4737a25b3eff7f5171fe7092f24823bff6f7ac6a4f4f000ee78df3a3dcc2.Judge/Board-made burden structure anchored to the purpose hook, not words of the statute. Applies only after the General Counsel proves the initial unlawful-motivation case.