DirecTV, Inc. v. National Labor Relations Board

Twenty-six technicians objected to their employer’s new, exacting compensation terms. When them employer refused to relent, they pitched their story to a local news station’s consumer watchdog reporter. These employees then appeared on television in an effort to curry public sympathy for their demands. So far, no problem. The NLRA has always blessed organized efforts like these aimed at gaining advantage in a labor dispute.

But when these technicians falsely accused their employer during a television broadcast of certain outrageous business practices, they crossed a line — from labor dispute…