Corporate Leadership

Home Depot Punished Staff for BLM Activism, Labor Board Alleges

  • NLRB says retailer shut down legally protected behavior
  • Black people make up 17% of Home Depot’s U.S. workforce
Photographer: Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg
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Home Depot Inc. used threats and punishments to try to shut down employee activism about race-based harassment, including by forcing out a worker who wore a “BLM” apron, according to a complaint issued by federal labor board prosecutors.

In an August 12 filing on behalf of the general counsel of the National Labor Relations Board, a regional director of the agency accused the home-improvement retailer of selectively enforcing its dress code, which prohibits displaying “causes or political messages unrelated to workplace matters,” to target employees who wore “Black Lives Matter” apparel at work.