A picket is a non-violent protest where striking workers gather outside a workplace to make the public aware of their cause. The goal is to pressure the company to comply with union demands and shame those who cross the line. Pickets can be disruptive, but they are an effective way to raise awareness and put pressure on companies.
A picket is a style of protest in which striking workers gather outside a workplace to make the public aware of their cause. Protesters usually carry placards detailing their grievances with the employer, and also hand out informational flyers. In addition to alerting the public to a labor issue, pickets also discourage temporary workers, pejoratively called strikebreakers. Because someone would need to actively cross the picket line to get into the workplace, the rally is designed to shame people who are willing to work while a labor dispute is resolved.
The origins of the term “picket” probably lie in the poles used to hold up protest signs, which resemble the poles used to make a picket fence. Placards make protesters highly visible, even from a great distance, allowing the protest to have a visible impact. The most common type of demonstration is a mass picket, where employees gather in front of the workplace in question. Employees can also engage in a secondary picket, which targets companies that buy the products the company makes or the homes of company executives. Some unions also have mobile demonstrations known as “flying pickets” which are able to move quickly from site to site, before the company has an opportunity to disrupt the line.
Most pickets are meant to be non-violent, with the overall goal of putting pressure on the company to comply with union demands. This is accomplished both by shaming the company with public attention and by stopping work through strike action. In some cases, a picket line can become disruptive, with protesters becoming extremely loud or aggressive. This is often the case with pickets organized to raise awareness of social issues, such as demonstrations in front of abortion clinics.
People who support the goals of the labor organizers will try to avoid crossing the picket line. This can become problematic when workers at universities and other public institutions go on strike, forcing other staff members, as well as the general public, to choose between not attending work or school, or overstepping the line and potentially undermining effectiveness of the protest. The sense of ethical unease caused by this situation can also help raise awareness of the issue. Most strikers along the line are happy to engage in conversation with people about the demands the union is making and how the public can help ensure those demands are met.
For a company, such an event can represent a substantial loss of income. In an already unionized company, a picket line is a last resort in union negotiations, suggesting that all other bargaining efforts have failed. Union members are aware of the economic impact caused by the pickets and hope to use it for leverage. In a non-union business, protests like this sometimes help speed up the unionization process.
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