On May 9, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit heard oral argument regarding the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) exception allowing an employer to unilaterally make decisions during an emergency. The...more
The National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”), in a 3-1 decision, held that an employee’s display on their work uniform of “BLM,” an acronym for Black Lives Matter, constituted protected concerted activity under Section 7 of...more
2/23/2024
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Black Lives Matter ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Protected Activity ,
Race Relations ,
Section 7 ,
Uniforms
As recently foreshadowed, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or “Board”) now appears poised to weigh in on whether noncompete agreements, even those that may be legal under state law, violate the National Labor...more
10/4/2023
/ Corporate Counsel ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Section 7 ,
State Labor Laws ,
Trade Secrets ,
Unions
Late summer brings picnics, hiking, and general fun. It also brings a slew of NLRB decisions as the agency’s fiscal year comes to an end on September 30. One of the more highly-anticipated decisions concerns the lawfulness of...more
On August 9, 2022, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia held that the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) had adequate justification to rule that an aluminum manufacturer (“Constellium”) violated the...more
8/15/2022
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Discrimination ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Hiring & Firing ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Offensive Language ,
Over-Time ,
Protected Concerted Activity ,
Protests
On June 21, 2022, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) released its rulemaking agenda for Spring 2022, indicating the Board is considering revisions to two significant and tumultuous topics pursuant to the rulemaking...more
In an Advice Memorandum released on May 25, 2022, NLRB General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo laid out a blueprint for changes she’d like made to Board precedent concerning union representatives’ access to employer property. At...more
5/31/2022
/ Collective Bargaining ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Labor Relations ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
NLRB General Counsel ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Union Elections ,
Union Organizers ,
Unions
As previously discussed, the New York City Council passed a law at the end of last year requiring certain hotels in the City to pay eligible employees weekly severance payments for up to 30 weeks.
There were swift legal...more
4/6/2022
/ Contracts Clause ,
Due Process ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equal Protection ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Hotels ,
Layoffs ,
Likelihood of Success ,
NLRA ,
Preemption ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Severance Pay ,
State Labor Laws
As foreshadowed by the NLRB General Counsel’s August 2021 Advice Memorandum, the vacillating standard for the legality of employer handbooks and policies and confidentiality requirements during open employer-investigations...more
3/11/2022
/ Boeing ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employee Handbooks ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Labor Reform ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
NLRB General Counsel ,
Section 7
In what will have a significant impact on the employment status of “gig” economy workers under federal labor law, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or “Board”) seems poised to revert to a more worker-friendly...more
12/31/2021
/ Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Freelance Workers ,
Gig Economy ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Misclassification ,
NLRA ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Wage and Hour
On Friday, December 10, 2021, the Board announced in its regulatory agenda that it plans to engage in rulemaking on the standard for determining whether two employers are “joint employers” under the NLRA. ...more
12/16/2021
/ Browning-Ferris Industries of California Inc. ,
Collective Bargaining ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Franchises ,
Joint Employers ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Staffing Agencies ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Unions
As we have discussed previously, Congressional Democrats have been attempting to amend the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”) for the last few years. ...more
12/13/2021
/ Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Collective Bargaining ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Labor Relations ,
Legislative Agendas ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Unions
The ability to form smaller bargaining units by breaking up larger aspects of an employer’s organization—sometimes called “micro-units”—is generally seen as an effort to enhance the ability of unions to gain entry into an...more
Google recently suffered a blow in its ongoing National Labor Relations Board litigation, when an Administrative Law Judge appointed to rule on a discovery dispute ordered the Silicon Valley company to turn over the lion’s...more
12/6/2021
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Attorney-Client Privilege ,
Discovery ,
Discovery Disputes ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Evidence ,
Google ,
Labor Relations ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Retaliation ,
Subpoenas ,
Unions ,
Work-Product Doctrine
On November 10, 2021, the National Labor Relations Board announced that it is seeking public input to address whether the Board should award consequential damages to make employees whole for economic losses and under what...more
11/17/2021
/ Damages ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Labor Reform ,
Layoffs ,
NLRB ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Statutory Violations ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Wage and Hour
On November 10, 2021, General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo issued a memorandum outlining bargaining obligations under OSHA’s Emergency Temporary Standard to Protect Workers from Coronavirus (“ETS”). Responding to Inquiries...more
11/11/2021
/ Collective Bargaining ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Covered Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Infectious Diseases ,
New Rules ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
NLRB General Counsel ,
OSHA ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
As we discussed here, members of the House Education and Labor Committee have been attempting to end-run the procedural hurdles that have prevented the Protect the Right to Organize Act (“PRO Act”) legislation from becoming...more
10/29/2021
/ Budget Reconciliation ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Labor Relations ,
Legislative Agendas ,
NLRA ,
Penalties ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Violations ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Unions
In AT&T Mobility LLC , 370 NLRB No. 121 (2021), the NLRB majority (Members Ring and Emanuel) held that the Employer could lawfully maintain a workplace policy prohibiting its workers from recording conversations with their...more
In Universal Health Services, Inc., 370 N.L.R.B. No. 118 (April 30, 2021), the Board dismissed a complaint alleging that an employer’s bargaining proposals seeking significant concessions violated the duty to bargain in good...more
5/10/2021
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Collective Bargaining ,
Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA) ,
Discipline ,
Duty to Bargain ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Labor Relations ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Unions
On April 30, 2021, in National Association of Broadcast Employees & Technicians, 370 NLRB No. 114 (2021), the Board declined to opine on the validity of President Biden’s termination of former General Counsel Peter Robb and...more
On April 21, 2021, the National Labor Relations Board (the “Board”) declined to eliminate or modify its long-standing contract-bar doctrine, which purports to provide stability in the relationship among the employer, a...more
As discussed in greater detail here, Governor Andrew Cuomo is poised to sign into law S.1034B/A.2681B, also referred to as the New York Health and Essential Rights Act, or the “Hero Act.”
The Hero Act has two main...more
Over the past few years, the National Labor Relations Board has frequently weighed in on employer’s workplace and employee handbook policies, examining whether an employer’s policy impacts employees’ rights under Section 7 of...more
On March 31, 2021, the NLRB’s Acting General Counsel Peter Ohr issued a Memorandum entitled “Effectuation of the National Labor Relations Act through Vigorous Enforcement of Mutual Aid or Protection and Inherently Concerted...more
Though the National Labor Relations Board has established a pathway for holding in-person union elections, mail-ballot elections continue to be the norm in many Regions across the country. Of course, the more mail-ballot...more