Seyfarth Synopsis: President Trump has nominated a candidate for the final remaining vacancy on the five-member National Labor Relations Board, who, if confirmed, would give the Republicans a 3-2 majority on the NLRB.

Five months after his inauguration, President Donald Trump has finally nominated a candidate for the remaining vacancy on the five-member National Labor Relations Board. The nominee, William Emanuel, is a management-side labor attorney with decades of labor and employment experience. President Trump’s nomination comes just days after the President nominated another Republican lawyer, Marvin Kaplan, to the other vacancy on the NLRB. Currently, the Democrats enjoy a 2-1 majority on the NLRB. However, if confirmed, Emanuel and Kaplan would join fellow Republican, Philip Miscimarra, in a 3-2 majority for Republicans on the NLRB.

President Trump’s recent nominations should give hope to private-sector employers. The business community has roundly criticized the Obama Board for a number of rulings that they argued overreached the Board’s authority, resulting in unreasonably pro-union decisions. With a Republican majority, the NLRB is poised to take a more employer-friendly approach. This is especially critical for employers as the Board may see fit to evaluate high-profile issues such as graduate student employment status, “micro-unit” issues, and “joint employer” relationships.

Emanuel’s nomination would be for a five-year term set to expire on August 27, 2021. At present, no confirmation hearing dates have been made public, and it is unclear whether the candidates will be confirmed before the August recess. As always, we will continue to update you with more information as it becomes available.