The case American Radio Association, AFL-CIO, et al. v. Mobile Steamship Association, Inc., et al., 1974 involved a dispute over the interpretation of Section 301(a) of the Labor Management Relations Act (LMRA). The plaintiffs were unions representing maritime workers who sued shipping companies for breach of collective bargaining agreements related to overtime pay and work assignments. The defendants argued that these disputes should be resolved through arbitration as stipulated in their contracts rather than litigation in federal court. However, the Supreme Court ruled against them stating that Section 301(a) allows suits for violation of contracts between an employer and labor organization to be brought directly to federal district courts without first going through arbitration procedures outlined in those same contracts.

In the dissenting opinion for the case of American Radio Association, AFL-CIO v. Mobile Steamship Association, Inc., Justice Douglas argued that the majority's decision to allow employers to refuse employment based on past union activity was a violation of employees' rights under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). He contended that this ruling would discourage workers from participating in unions due to fear of retaliation and thus undermine one of NLRA’s main purposes: promoting collective bargaining. Furthermore, he disagreed with the majority's interpretation that an employer could discriminate against an individual because they had previously struck against another employer. In his view, such discrimination is not justified by business necessity and therefore should be considered unlawful under NLRA.