On December 11 in a 3-2 ruling, the National Labor Relations Board (the “Board”) held in Purple Communications, Inc., that employees may use their employer’s email systems during non-work time in furtherance of their rights under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”). In other recent rulings the Board has held that activities such as disciplining employees for negative Facebook posts and promulgating handbook provisions discouraging “discourteous or inappropriate” behavior may violate the NLRA. In essence, the current ruling means that employees may use their employer’s email systems for union organizing activities and non-union related protected concerted activity.

Background and Prior Law -

Purple Communications provides sign language-based video interpretation services for the hearing impaired. The video interpreters have employer-assigned email accounts, but the employer’s handbook contained a policy limiting use of email to business purposes only. The policy prohibited, among other things...