William O. Douglas

“ Section 7 grants employees, inter alia, 'the right to self-organization, to form, join, or assist labor organizations.' Defeat of those rights by employer action does not necessarily depend on the existence of an anti-union bias. Over and again the Board had ruled that § 8 (a) (1) is violated if an employee is discharged for misconduct arising out of a protected activity, despite the employer's good faith, when it is shown that the misconduct never occurred. ”

“ Union activity often engenders strong emotions and gives rise to active rumors. A protected activity acquires a precarious status if innocent employees can be discharged while engaging in it, even though the employer acts in good faith. ”

“ Notes
↑ Sections 8 (a) (1) and (3) read as follows:↑ As an alternative ground for its finding that the Act had been violated, the Board held that Pate's allegation was merely 'seized up (on) ' by the respondent as an 'excuse' for the discharges of Davis and Harmon. ”