EMPLOYER INTERFERENCE, RESTRAINT, COERCION; DEFENSES – Business Necessity

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Once a prima facie case of interference is established, the burden shifts to the employer to articulate a legitimate justification for its conduct. The scrutiny with which the employer’s conduct will be examined depends on the severity of the harm. Where the harm to employees’ rights is slight and the employer offers justification based on operational necessity, the competing interests will be balanced. But where the harm is inherently destructive of employee rights, the employer’s conduct will be excused only on proof that it was occasioned by circumstances beyond the employer’s control and that no alternative course of action was available.