yellow dog contract

noun

An agreement between an employer and an employee in which the employee agrees, as a condition of employment, not to be a member of a labor union whilst employed.

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Meanings

nounyellow dog contract (plural yellow dog contracts)

plural yellow dog contracts

  1. lawAn agreement between an employer and an employee in which the employee agrees, as a condition of employment, not to be a member of a labor union whilst employed.

Origin

So called because such agreements were thought to reduce employees to the status of yellow dogs (“worthless things”).

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Spanish contrato que prohíbe afiliación con un gremio
  • contrato que prohíbe afiliación con un gremioagreement
Cite this entry
APA

yellow dog contract. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/yellow%20dog%20contract

MLA

“yellow dog contract.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/yellow%20dog%20contract. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “yellow dog contract,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/yellow%20dog%20contract.

Source: yellow dog contract on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.