As we have previously reported, from the time President Biden took office, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or the “Board”) began systematically reversing Trump-era policy, and shifting toward pro-union and...more
On August 15, 2024, the Appropriations Committee of the California State Assembly passed SB 399 by a vote of 10–3. The bill had passed the Senate in 2023 and has been with the Assembly since, waiting for action and a vote....more
8/23/2024
/ California ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
General Assembly ,
Labor Reform ,
Legislative Agendas ,
New Legislation ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
State and Local Government ,
State Bans ,
State Legislatures ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Unions
On May 14, 2024, the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts granted a petition for interim injunctive relief under Section 10(j) of the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”) that was filed by the...more
Through Board decisions, rule making, and NLRB General Counsel’s (“GC”) memoranda, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or “the Board”) continues to expand the potential penalties for employers found to have committed...more
4/22/2024
/ Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Section 7 ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Unions
As we previously reported and discussed here, the Cemex Construction Materials Pacific, LLC ruling has dramatically changed the threshold that will prompt the National Labor Relation Board (“NLRB”) to issue mandatory...more
10/23/2023
/ Collective Bargaining ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Labor Relations ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Unions
On the heels of the National Labor Relations Board’s decision in McLaren Macomb, which invalidated most confidentiality and nondisparagement provisions in a variety of employment agreements (as we covered here and here), NLRB...more
6/13/2023
/ Antitrust Division ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
NLRB ,
NLRB General Counsel ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Proposed Rules ,
Section 7 ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Unions
In contravention of decades-old precedent, employers may be required to recognize unions without a secret ballot election, thereby denying employers the opportunity to protect the private choice of their employees. The...more
As we have previously reported, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or the “Board”) was likely to undergo substantial policy changes under President Biden. This process began when President Biden took the unprecedented...more
The Trump National Labor Relations Board (Board or NLRB) gifted employers a significant win on the eve of the Christmas holiday with its December 23 decision in United Parcel Service, Inc., 369 NLRB No. 1 (UPS), which...more
1/3/2020
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Babcock & Wilcox Construction ,
Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA) ,
Contract Terms ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Employment Contract ,
Filing Grievances ,
Grievance Process ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Labor Law Violations ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Relations ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Unions ,
UPS ,
Wrongful Termination
The Trump National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) continues to reshape the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA or Act) with new decisions that reverse precedents and undo legal restrictions placed on employers during the Obama...more
12/23/2019
/ Caesars ,
Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA) ,
Confidential Information ,
Electronic Communications ,
Email ,
Email Policies ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Rights ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Protected Activity ,
Purple Communications ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Union Dues ,
Unions ,
Workplace Communication ,
Workplace Investigations
On the eve of the holidays, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) delivered an early Christmas present to employers with its issuance of new regulations governing the NLRB election process. While not scraping the Obama...more
On October 12, 2019, Governor Newsom signed Assembly Bill 1291 (“AB 1291”) into law, which requires companies to sign a so-called “labor peace” agreement with a union or risk losing their cannabis license; thereby,...more
10/24/2019
/ Business & Professions Code ,
Collective Bargaining ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Preemption ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Supremacy Clause ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Union Organizers ,
Union Representatives ,
Unions
A flurry of critical cases have issued out of the NLRB over the past two weeks. The latest is the Board’s decision in MV Transportation, 368 NLRB No. 66 (2019), and the Board’s decision provides critical cover to employers...more
9/12/2019
/ Collective Bargaining ,
Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA) ,
Contract Interpretation ,
Contract Terms ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Good Faith ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Unilateral Modification ,
Unions ,
Waivers ,
Working Conditions
It is lawful to discipline and even discharge an employee for making inappropriate or offensive remarks in the workplace. Indeed, current anti-harassment and anti-bullying laws may require an employer to take adverse action...more
9/12/2019
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Hiring & Firing ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Offensive Language ,
Protected Concerted Activity ,
Racist Remarks ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Unions
Setting clear and reasonable standards for taking access to an employer’s private property is high on the National Labor Relations Board’s agenda. Not only is the Board talking about issuing formal rules in this area, but the...more
9/11/2019
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Dismissals ,
Disparate Treatment ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Kroger ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Private Property ,
Property Owners ,
Reversal ,
Right of Access ,
Solicitation ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Union Organizers ,
Union Representatives ,
Unions
Does an employer who genuinely believes that its workers are independent contractors and tells them that they are contractors and not employees, only to later find out that it was wrong, violate Section 8(a)(1) of the...more
9/6/2019
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Administrative Review ,
Delivery Drivers ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Former Employer ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misclassification ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Protected Concerted Activity ,
Reversal ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Wrongful Termination
In its 84-year history, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB, Board or Agency) has promulgated a very small number of rules pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act, relying, instead, on individualized adjudications...more
8/14/2019
/ Construction Industry ,
Corporate Counsel ,
New Rules ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
NPRM ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Union Elections ,
Union Representatives ,
Unions
The National Labor Relations Act’s (NLRA or Act) Section 7 grants to all employees — regardless of whether they are unionized or not — the right to engage in protected concerted activity (PCA). Accordingly, an employer may...more
8/2/2019
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Protected Concerted Activity ,
Section 7 ,
Strike ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Unions ,
Wal-Mart
Unionized workers wishing to rid themselves of continued union representation (and their employers) just got some very good news from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) with the issuance of Johnson Controls,...more
It is unlawful for unions to secondarily picket construction sites or to coercively enmesh neutral parties in the disputes that a union may have with another employer. This area of the law is governed by the National Labor...more
5/24/2019
/ Construction Industry ,
Construction Workers ,
General Contractors ,
Land Developers ,
Land Owners ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
NLRB General Counsel ,
Right to Picket ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Unions
On November 8, 2017, Peter B. Robb was sworn in as the General Counsel (GC) of the NLRB for a four year term. Robb succeeds Richard Griffin, who has been the GC since November 2013. Robb wasted no time in taking initial steps...more
12/8/2017
/ Browning-Ferris Industries of California Inc. ,
Email Policies ,
Employee Handbooks ,
Joint Employers ,
NLRB ,
NLRB General Counsel ,
NRLA ,
Obama Administration ,
Policy Memorandums ,
Presidential Nominations ,
Protected Concerted Activity ,
Recusal ,
Trump Administration ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Unions ,
Weingarten Rights