lockout
Americannoun
-
lockouts
plural
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of lockout
First recorded in 1850–55; noun use of verb phrase lock out
Explanation
A lockout is a company's response to workers who are disputing conditions or planning a strike. During a lockout, managers don't allow workers to come to work until they agree to the company's terms of employment. A lockout is sort of the opposite of a strike. During a strike, employees refuse to work until management agrees to compromise with them on issues like wages and working conditions. During a lockout, the company refuses to allow workers access to the workplace until they settle for the terms the owners and managers want to enforce. Sometimes just the threat of a lockout is enough to suppress protests and strikes.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The airline issued a lockout notice in response.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 2, 2026
Or do the owners surrender on the salary cap, well aware that a 2027 lockout could drive away fans on the eve of media rights negotiations in 2028?
From Los Angeles Times ● May 12, 2026
That debacle is the reason why the NFL’s preparation for a potential lockout is now months ahead of where it was 14 years ago.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 31, 2026
The NFL is facing a potential lockout with its game officials over money and officiating quality measures, with the current agreement expiring May 31.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 31, 2026
Once, when I am with Pauline as my team leader, she calls Ted to report a lockout and his response, she reports ruefully, is, “Don’t do this to me.”
From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich
Major leaguers and fans have weathered five player strikes and four owner lockouts since 1972.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 25, 2026
Sami Pajari finished 46sec behind to complete the podium and make Toyota the first manufacturer since Citroen in 2010 to claim back-to-back podium lockouts in the WRC.
From Barron's ● Feb. 15, 2026
The Cornell School of Industrial and Labor Relations Labor Action Tracker logged 424 work stoppages - which includes 417 strikes and seven lockouts - involving approximately 224,000 workers in 2022.
From Washington Times ● Aug. 28, 2023
The PMA and the ILWU, which represents about 22,000 dockworkers on the West Coast, had pledged not to comment in the media and to continue working without issues such as slowdowns or lockouts.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 21, 2023
In the month of May alone, unions across the nation battled with employers in 413 strikes and lockouts.
From "A Few Red Drops: The Chicago Race Riot of 1919" by Claire Hartfield
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
