Judicial Watch, a public interest group, has sued the National Labor Relations Board to force it to release documents in the case against the Boeing Co.
The conservative watchdog organization said it requested information from the labor board on July 14 through the Freedom of Information Act.
The labor board has sued Boeing, alleging the company illegally retaliated against its Machinists union in Washington when the jet maker established a second 787 factory in South Carolina. Boeing’s pick of North Charleston in 2009 came a year after the company’s Puget Sound-area Machinists staged a 57-day strike in 2008. Boeing denies the labor board’s claims.
The labor board’s general counsel has said that Boeing should add another 787 line in Washington to make up for its alleged wrongdoing.
Although the labor board acknowledged Judicial Watch’s request, it failed to respond in the allotted timeframe, the group said on Tuesday.
“The American people have a right to know the facts surrounding the extraordinary decision by the NLRB to sue Boeing in order to effectively shut down an entire factory in South Carolina,” Tom Fitton, president of Judicial Watch, said in a statement. “There is simply no good reason for the NLRB to keep these records secret – unless it has something to hide.”
An administrative law judge is hearing the case against Boeing in Seattle.
Last Friday, the labor board’s general counsel also declined to provide all of the documents requested by the House Committee on Oversight and Government reform due to the ongoing nature of the case.
Unless Boeing and its Machinists negotiate a settlement, the labor board’s case is likely to take years to resolve.
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