lockout
n. countablen. a situation where a company stops employees from working during a disagreement about pay or rules. It is the opposite of a strike because the boss is the one closing the doors.
n. the exclusion of employees by their employer from their place of work until certain terms are agreed upon. Often used as a management tactic during industrial disputes to exert pressure on a labour union.
The factory lockout lasted for three weeks.
After the union rejected the final offer, management initiated a lockout, preventing hundreds of workers from entering the facility.
The protracted lockout severely damaged the local economy, as thousands of skilled labourers were unable to earn wages while the corporation refused to reopen the plant without significant concessions.
Deverbal from lock out.
Commonly used in the context of industrial relations and labour law.
the workers went on a lockoutthe workers went on strikeA lockout is initiated by the employer; a strike is initiated by the employees.