In a win for social justice advocates in the workplace, the National Labor Relations Board ruled Wednesday that big-box retailer Home Depot broke the law by requiring workers to remove Black Lives Matter insignia from their uniforms and punishing one for refusing to do so.

The boards majority wrote in their decision that employees sporting the letters BLM on their attire as they pushed management on race issues amounted to protected concerted activity, and was therefore shielded by the law. They ordered Home Depot to offer reinstatement and back pay to a worker whod resigned rather than remove their BLM marking.

The NLRB enforces collective bargaining law on private-sector employers, and its five-member board in Washington serves as a high court for resolving labor disputes. (At the moment, there are only four members.) The BLM ruling falls in line with the boards more progressive reading of the law under a Democratic majority shaped by President Joe Biden.

The boards lone Republican member dissented.

According to the NLRB decision, a Home Depot manager had told the workers they had to take off their BLM insignia because it conflicted with the companys dress code. One employee was told that if they wore BLM on their uniforms, then management would have to let others wear swastikas, according to trial testimony.

A Home Depot spokesperson said the company disagrees with the decision.

The Home Depot is fully committed to diversity and respect for all people. We dont tolerate any kind of workplace harassment or discrimination, the spokesperson said.

The company declined to say whether it plans to appeal the ruling to federal court.

The labor boards decision reversed an earlier ruling by an administrative law judge who heard the case and determined that the workers BLM protest wasnt protected because it wasnt specifically tied to issues at their workplace. Instead, the judge found, Black Lives Matter served as a political umbrella for societal concerns, rather than for a particular work grievance.

We reject that reasoning, the board members wrote. Neither the origins of BLM messaging, nor its primary use, dictate how the BLM marking may be used or understood in a particular workplace context (or, indeed, in a broader setting).