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
Under well-settled, decades-old precedent, employers have historically been free to hold mandatory “captive audience” meetings to educate employees, share views on unionization, and discuss what employees’ rights are with...more
The National Labor Relations Board (Board or NLRB) could reverse a 2019 decision holding that honest, albeit mistaken, classification decisions and announcements to employees do not violate the National Labor Relations Act...more
The National Labor Relations Board (the “NLRB” or “Board”) seemingly took very little time off during the holidays and in the last few weeks announced that it is seeking public input on whether to reconsider two significant...more
As we previously predicted, significant changes are taking place at the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or the “Board”). To date, much of that change has been in the agenda set by General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo. Now,...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
On July 21, 2021, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or the “Board”) issued a 3-1 decision affirming its precedent that displaying banners and a large inflatable rat (“Scabby the Rat”) near neutral employers does not...more
Substantial changes are afoot at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Most notably, these include the firing of the NLRB’s General Counsel Peter Robb and the rescission of ten of Robb’s General Counsel Memoranda. The...more
On January 25, 2021, the NLRB Division of Advice (“the Division”) released a memo that may indicate a change in the way workers engaged in cannabis activities are covered under federal labor law. Under the NLRA, the right to...more
When it comes to whether unions have a right to enter an employer’s premises over the employer’s objections, California’s law is the polar opposite of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and the law in most other states....more
11/20/2020
/ Agricultural Sector ,
Agricultural Workers ,
Business & Professions Code ,
Cannabis Products ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fifth Amendment ,
Marijuana Cultivation ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Private Property ,
Public Sector Unions ,
Right-To-Access ,
SCOTUS ,
State and Local Government ,
Takings Clause ,
Trespass ,
Unions
On September 18, the Board’s GC issued GC Memo 20-14, entitled Summaries of Advice Merit Determinations Related to Coronavirus Disease 2019 Issues for the purpose of giving the public a better understanding of the GC’s...more
9/23/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Duty to Bargain ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Layoffs ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
NLRB General Counsel ,
Protected Concerted Activity ,
Unions ,
Weingarten Rights
Unions have long sought to avoid the NLRB’s election process, relying instead upon so-called “neutrality” agreements to obtain initial recognition by employers and legally enforceable rights to represent and bargain on behalf...more
On June 23, the National Labor Relations Board’s (Board or NLRB) issued a decision in Mountaire Farms, Inc., 5-RD-256888 in which the Board granted review of a Regional Director’s decision applying the Board’s contract bar...more
As we previously discussed earlier this month, District Court Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson issued an Order in American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations v. National Labor Relations Board, Civil Case...more
Last December, we addressed the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB or Board) new rules applicable to all NLRB-conducted elections. As then reported, these new rules partially reversed election rules implemented in 2014...more
From time to time, employers trigger labor disputes when they make unilateral changes in working conditions. Unions objecting to such changes often complain to the NLRB, claiming a change to be mandatory bargaining subjects...more
In Apogee Retail, 368 NLRB No. 144 (2019), the NLRB overruled the Obama Board’s decision in Banner Estrella Medical Center, 362 NLRB 1108 (2015) and held that investigative confidentiality rules that by their terms apply only...more
The National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”) is a federal law that applies to nearly all employers in the United States. In the wake of COVID-19, there are numerous issues implicating the NLRA, including but not limited to...more
February 25, 2020, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) followed through on its earlier promise and issued its Joint Employer Final Rule, officially reversing the Board’s 2015 Browning-Ferris Industries (BFI)...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
While bargaining, unions often demand that employers produce information relevant to the bargaining process so that the union may fulfill its duties as bargaining representative. Under the law and absent some compelling...more
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