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open shop
noun
: an establishment in which eligibility for employment and retention on the payroll are not determined by membership or nonmembership in a labor union though there may be an agreement by which a union is recognized as sole bargaining agent
Examples of open shop in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
At one time, Campa had high ambitions to expand his brand to multiple cities via a franchising group that six years ago was hoping to open shops in Temecula, Scottsdale, Riverside, Pasadena, North Hollywood/Burbank, Tucson, Sacramento and Anaheim.
—Lori Weisberg, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Apr. 2024
Retailers tend to be reluctant to open shop in areas with fewer homes and less accessible roads.
—Jaime Moore-Carrillo, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 Mar. 2024
The latter could influence cost-benefit analyses of companies looking to open shop in Arizona.
—Brandon Loomis, The Arizona Republic, 8 Feb. 2024
The settlement of all lawsuits over New York's marijuana licensing program will allow 436 retail license holders entangled in the legal proceedings to gain the ability to open shops and commence deliveries.
—Dario Sabaghi, Forbes, 28 Nov. 2023
Inside one of the few open shops, Afro City Marketplace, owner Rwanda Ray sits at the front counter dressed in a floral-print robe and gold cowboy boots, with a huge ring in the shape of Africa adorning her left hand.
—Tyrone Beason, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2023
The National California Cherry Blossom Festival draws more than 200,000 people every year, and in the early mornings, older couples walk through the neighborhood hand-in-hand as businesses, some run by the granchildren of the original owners, open shop.
—Ryan Kost, San Francisco Chronicle, 4 Mar. 2021
As a famously adventurous nation looked inward, a new intentionality settled across the country: Why stay in the cities when regional towns offered an opportunity to open shop, cook, and live well?
—Riley Wilson, Condé Nast Traveler, 10 June 2022
Finally, Navarro said, because states are the primary regulators of insurance, tamping down on health care scams can be like playing a game of whack-a-mole — when one state takes action, scammers move to another one to open shop.
—Bram Sable-Smith, NBC News, 1 Nov. 2022
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'open shop.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1903, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near open shop
Cite this Entry
“Open shop.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/open%20shop. Accessed 23 May. 2024.
Legal Definition
open shop
noun
: an establishment in which eligibility for employment and retention on the payroll are not determined by membership or nonmembership in a labor union though there may be an agreement by which a union is recognized as sole bargaining agent
called also merit shop
compare agency shop, closed shop, union shopMore from Merriam-Webster on open shop
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about open shop
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