Major NLRB Victory for 57,000 Employees of the Regis Corporation

[ProSense]

Major NLRB Victory for 57,000 Employees of the Regis Corporation

by nickinnewyork

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I received word today of a settlement that was reached between the Regis Corporation and the National Labor Relations Board. According to their homepage, Regis Corporation is an "international company maintaining hair salon franchises and training schools in Europe and North America." Regis operates nearly 10,000 hair salons and employs approximately 57,000 workers. Regis is a Fortune 1000 company headquartered in Minneapolis, MN, and their franchises operate under Supercuts, Sassoon Salon, Regis Salons, CostCutters, Master Cuts, SmartStyle and Hair Club for Men and Women. Regis "owns, franchises, or holds ownership interests in approximately 12,700 worldwide locations."

Even though you might assume that a corporation with nearly 60,000 workers wouldn't be able to get away with incredibly blatant labor law violations, they did. This is the story of how one single person in a sleepy upstate New York college town was the catalyst behind an action in support of one single individual who had been wronged, and how a community coalesced around her and ultimately led to a major NLRB victory for the 57,000 American workers of a major worldwide corporation.

For three and a half years, Amber Little was a stylist at the Ithaca, NY CostCutters location. On January 6, 2010, Little was terminated from her position for protesting a new policy on behalf of herself and other employees, an action that the NLRB determined to be "protected concerted activity." CostCutters (and Regis) had implemented a new sales policy which required stylists to sell hair products and accessories--each stylist needed to sell a total of products each shift which equaled 15% of their gross revenue. Little did not maintain this quota and was fired because of it but it should be noted that a part of her termination was her decision to protest the policy on behalf of fellow workers.

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It should also be noted that while down 6% from the previous quarter, in July 2010 Reuters reported that Regis had fourth-quarter revenue of $590 million. (In a quarter.) That being said, the $8.00/hour wage paid to Little was low enough that Little had to collect food stamps, WIC, Section 8 housing assistance, and Medicaid in order to feed her family, make sure her kids were healthy, make sure there was a roof over their heads, and make sure she was healthy herself. This is an individual who was doing 30 haircuts a DAY and this is the case. WHAT COUNTRY DO WE LIVE IN?

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The settlement was announced yesterday.

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NOTICE TO EMPLOYEES
POSTED PURSUANT TO A SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT APPROVED BY A REGIONAL DIRECTOR OF THE NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
AN AGENCY OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT


FEDERAL LAW (SECTION 7 OF THE NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS ACT) GIVES YOU THE RIGHT TO:

• Form, join, or assist a union
  
  
• Choose representatives to bargain with us on your behalf
  
  
• Act together with other employees for your benefit and protection
  
  
• Choose not to engage in any of these protected activities

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