Lockout occurs when an employer closes a plant in order to keep employees from working. The employer is using the economic weapon of a work and wage stoppage to get employees to agree to some particular condition of work or wages. The lockout is like the strike in that it is an economic weapon used in labor disputes. The lockout differs from the strike, however, because the strike is a work stoppage the employees start to compel the employer to meet certain demands.
Lockouts, like strikes, are usually caused by wage disputes. But the number of lockouts is far less than the number of strikes. Lockouts make up only about 3 to 4 per cent of the total number of work stoppages that occur. The reason the percentage is so low is that employers are reluctant to shut their own facilities. They sometimes have more direct and effective means of placing economic pressure on workers, such as replacing workers involved in labor disputes.
