Our Labor Relations thought leaders have pulled together their top predictions for the new year so that employers can get a head start to 2026.
Biden-era Precedent Will Be on the Chopping Block
Now that the Board has finally returned to a legal quorum with a confirmed GC, it will likely seek to overturn several significant Biden-era cases over the months thereafter. The Senate confirmed James Murphy and Scott Mayer as NLRB members on December 18, along with Crystal Carey as the Board’s General Counsel, restoring the Board’s ability to function after nearly a year without enough members to hear cases.
Rulings likely targeted for reversal include:
- Stericycle: found that workplace rules and policies are presumptively unlawful if a reasonable employee could interpret them as chilling protected concerted activity under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA);
- Thryv: expanded the remedies the NLRB can seek for NLRA violations to “all direct or foreseeable” damages;
- Cemex: forces employers to bargain with a union if they decline to recognize a union claiming majority support and then committed an unfair labor practice.
- and Amazon: outlawed mandatory captive audience meetings.
Organized Labor to Pivot from Labor Board
With this expected shift in policy, unions will begin to look places other than the NLRB for relief. This could mean an increase in labor grievances in union shops. Unions may also revisit recognitional picketing to pressure employers into recognizing them outside the election process. This would result in some reduction in RC Petition activity – leaving employers with little choice but to timely file RM petitions in response to recognition demands.
This trend will likely also translate into unions’ strike strategy. Unions will continue to step up their reliance upon the strike weapon as their preferred tool to economically pressure employers at the bargaining table.
