1. The National Labor Relations Board reinstated its previous standard for restricting employee severance agreements. McLaren Macomb, 372 NLRB No. 58 (2023). The Board’s ruling applies to all severance agreements for...more
The National Labor Relations Board has returned to its pre-2020 standard restricting certain confidentiality and non-disparagement clauses in departing employees’ severance agreements. McLaren Macomb, 372 NLRB No. 58 (2023)....more
1. More than 220,000 workers participated in over 300 total work stoppages in 2022, according to a Bloomberg Law report. The number of strikes is the highest recorded in 17 years. While the majority of work stoppages involved...more
The union membership rate among private sector workers fell to 6.0% in 2022, according to a U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) news release. This is down from 6.1% in 2021 and continues the overall decline since private...more
1. The National Labor Relations Board expanded its authority to include awarding consequential damages in unfair labor practice cases. Thryv, Inc., 372 NLRB No. 22 (Dec. 13, 2022). Monetary remedies for violations of the...more
1/9/2023
/ Bargaining Units ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Federal Budget ,
Information Technology ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Protected Concerted Activity ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour
In a 3-2 decision, the National Labor Relations Board has reinstated its prior standard providing a more expansive right of off-duty contractor employees to access publicly accessible areas of the primary employer’s workplace...more
Swinging the pendulum back to imposing a higher hurdle for employers seeking to include employees improperly excluded from a proposed bargaining unit, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) in American Steel, 372 NLRB 23...more
In a 3-2 decision, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has expanded its own authority to order consequential damages in all cases in which “make whole” relief is appropriate. Thryv, Inc., 372 NLRB No. 22 (Dec. 13,...more
President Joe Biden signed legislation imposing a collective bargaining agreement between freight carriers and railroad unions, avoiding a nationwide strike. Congress passed the bill utilizing its authority under the Railway...more
Both the House and Senate have passed legislation under the Railway Labor Act to avoid a railroad strike by imposing the bargaining agreement brokered by President Joe Biden in September 2022....more
President Joe Biden has asked Congress to step in and enact legislation in the hopes of preventing a nationwide railway strike.
The move comes after four of 12 national railroad labor unions rejected a proposed bargaining...more
1. The National Labor Relations Board modified its test for determining if COVID-19-related conditions warrant mail ballot union elections, potentially signaling a return to mostly in-person votes. Starbucks Corp., 371 NLRB...more
11/9/2022
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Monitoring ,
Mail-In Ballots ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
NLRB General Counsel ,
Railways ,
Starbucks ,
Surveillance ,
Teamsters ,
Union Elections
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has proposed rescinding portions of its 2020 union representation procedures on blocking charges, voluntary recognition bar, and construction industry collective bargaining...more
Responding in part to the nature of the post-COVID-19 remote workplace, NLRB GC Jennifer Abruzzo has released a memo on employers’ use of electronic monitoring and automated management in the workplace....more
The National Labor Relations Board has proposed reversing the current joint-employer standard, which took effect on April 27, 2020. The new rule would revert to the Obama-era standard for determining joint-employer status...more
10/10/2022
/ Airports ,
Architects ,
Collective Bargaining ,
Food Service Workers ,
Joint Employers ,
MLB ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Railways ,
SMART ,
Strike ,
Supply Chain ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour
Noting the employer did not have an employee code of conduct policy prohibiting the use of derogatory language, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) held an automotive dealership violated the National Labor Relations Act...more
Labor Day 2022 comes at an optimistic time for U.S. labor unions. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, representation petitions and elections were declining steadily. However, National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) election filings...more
1. Compensation in non-union jobs is outpacing compensation in union-represented jobs. A Bureau of Labor and Statistics report indicates the total wage and benefit costs for private-sector nonunionized employers was 3% higher...more
9/12/2022
/ Collective Bargaining ,
Compensation ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Legal Fees ,
NLRB ,
Reimbursements ,
Teamsters ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour ,
Willful Misconduct
On August 29, 2022, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) issued a decision finding that absent special circumstances, employers may not enforce dress codes or uniform policies that interfere with employees’ right to...more
The National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or “the Board”) has proposed a new rule for determining joint employer status under the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”)....more
1. The National Labor Relations Board clarified its rerun election procedures in cases of uncontested election misconduct. Dynamic Concepts, 371 NLRB No. 117 (July 22, 2022). After losing an election to represent the...more
8/11/2022
/ AFL-CIO ,
Antitrust Division ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Memorandum of Understanding ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Union Elections ,
Unions ,
United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) ,
Wage and Hour
1. The National Labor Relations Board modified its electronic notice posting requirements for workplaces impacted by COVID-19. Paragon Systems, Inc., 371 NLRB No. 104 (June 2, 2022)....more
7/12/2022
/ Cease and Desist Orders ,
Discrimination ,
Electronic Reporting ,
Joint Employers ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
NLRB General Counsel ,
NPRM ,
Starbucks ,
Union Organizers ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour
1. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) General Counsel’s office issued a memorandum reiterating the rights of immigrant workers under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). Continuing its aggressive approach to...more
6/16/2022
/ Collective Bargaining ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Decertification ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
NLRB General Counsel ,
Twitter ,
Union Organizers ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour
1. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) General Counsel (GC) filed a brief seeking to expand unions’ right to obtain recognition from employers based on signed authorization cards alone, without the need for a Board...more
5/10/2022
/ Collective Bargaining ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
GAO ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Opt-Outs ,
Secret Ballot ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Union Elections ,
Unions
1. Major League Baseball and the players’ union reached agreement on a collective bargaining agreement, ending the lockout. After a nearly 100-day lockout, MLB and the Major League Baseball Players Association reached a deal...more
4/12/2022
/ Arbitration ,
Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA) ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Davis-Bacon Act ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
NLRB General Counsel ,
NPRM ,
Reimbursements ,
Unfair Labor Practices ,
Union Dues ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour