On August 23, 2011 the Washington D.C. area experienced a 5.9 magnitude earthquake. A week later, a “labor law earthquake” of far greater magnitude had its epicenter in a federal agency in D.C. In the coming weeks and months, its aftershocks will be felt by unprepared employers, particularly those operating hotels, restaurants, spas and clubs in the hospitality industry.

In an opinion that America’s largest private sector labor union called a“monumental victor[y] … for unions,” the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or “Board”) upended decades of precedent and placed virtually all employers at risk of organizing by so-called “micro unions.” The decision, Specialty Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center, 357 NLRB No. 83 (Aug. 26, 2011), was made public on August 30, 2011.