Which U.S. law limited federal courts’ power to issue injunctions in labor disputes?

The Norris–La Guardia Act limited federal courts’ power to issue injunctions in labor disputes.

Congress enacted the law in 1932 during a period when employers often sought court orders to stop strikes, picketing, and other union activity. The act restricted federal injunctions in cases involving labor disputes and protected workers’ ability to organize and participate in peaceful industrial action.

It also made many “yellow-dog contracts”—agreements requiring workers to promise not to join a union—unenforceable in federal court. These provisions marked a major shift away from judicial intervention on behalf of employers and toward greater legal space for collective worker action.

The act did not create a complete system of collective bargaining rights. Later legislation, especially the National Labor Relations Act of 1935, established broader protections and an administrative framework for union organizing and bargaining.