An employer's deliberate exclusion of workers from their workplace during a labor dispute, typically used as pressure to force workers to accept management's terms. This tactic prevents employees from working and earning wages until they agree to company demands.
First used in the 1850s during British industrial disputes, combining 'lock' and 'out' to describe physically barring workers from factories. The practice emerged as employers' response to workers' strikes, creating a balance of economic pressure in labor negotiations.
The infamous 1892 Homestead lockout at Andrew Carnegie's steel plant led to a violent confrontation between workers and Pinkerton guards, demonstrating how labor disputes could escalate into armed conflict. Modern lockouts, like the 2011 NFL season dispute, show how this 19th-century tactic still shapes labor relations today.
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