In the weeks surrounding Labor Day 2023, the National Labor Relations Board overturned precedent with decisions and rules significantly impacting both union and non-union employers. The result is labor laws encouraging both unionization and concerted employee actions affecting working conditions. Employers must review and assimilate these decisions before implementing new protocols and strategies in response.
NLRA
Forensic Review During Investigations: Have You Considered The NLRA?
NLRB General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo is pressing for stricter enforcement against the use of workplace technologies to monitor employees. As a result, employers should consider the National Labor Relations Act (the “Act”) when conducting forensic reviews of employee emails and texts during internal investigations.
On October 31, 2022, Abruzzo issued Memorandum GC 23-02 titled “Electronic…
NLRB GC Guidance on NLRB Decision Invalidating Confidentiality, Non-Disparagement Provisions in Severance Agreements
On March 22, 2023, National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) General Counsel Jennifer A. Abruzzo issued a memorandum to all NLRB Field Offices on the implications of the Board’s February 21, 2023, decision in McLaren Macomb, 372 NLRB No. 58 (2023).
In McLaren Macomb, the Board found an employer violated the National…
College Athletes Closer to Being ‘Joint Employees’: NLRB Moves Case Against USC, the Pac-12, and NCAA
The fast-changing world of college athletics is about to collide with the ever-changing doctrine of joint employment.
In January 2022, on behalf of football and basketball athletes at the University of Southern California (USC), the National College Players Association (NCPA) filed an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against USC…
NLRB Decision Grants Easier Property Access for Off-Duty Contract Workers
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 for the purpose of engaging in organizing activity.
Part of a wave of decisions overturning Trump-era precedent (e.g., Labor Board Returns…
NLRB General Counsel Memo on Electronic Monitoring of Employees
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. The memo also directs NLRB Regions to submit to the Division of Advice any cases involving intrusive or abusive electronic surveillance and algorithmic management…
Top Five Labor Law Developments for September 2022
- 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 under the National Labor Relations Act. Under the proposed rule, entities may be deemed joint employers if they “share or codetermine those matters
Labor Day 2022 Shows Union Activity at Highest Level in Decades
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 have increased by 58% in the first nine months of 2022, compared with the same time period in 2021, according to a Board…
NLRB Rules Employers Cannot Restrict Employees’ Right to Display Union Insignia
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 display union insignia. 371 NLRB No. 131 (Aug. 29, 2022). The NLRB’s decision is a return to a more restrictive precedent for…
Build Back Better Act Update: Committee Releases Labor Provisions for Inclusion in Senate Vote
The Build Back Better Act passed the House on November 19, 2021. It contains controversial provisions on many subjects, including new employer penalties under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). On December 11th, the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions released its version of the provisions of the Build Back Better bill on…