On August 25, the National Labor Relations Board (the Board) issued a monumental decision in Cemex Construction Materials Pacific, LLC, enacting a new framework for unions to gain recognition without a formal representation...more
On June 13, 2023, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) reconsidered its standard when determining whether workers are covered employees under the National Labor Relations Act or, instead, are independent contractors...more
On May 30, Jennifer A. Abruzzo, general counsel for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), issued new directives regarding the enforceability of non-compete agreements. Abruzzo’s memorandum contends generally that...more
On May 18, 2023, the National Labor Relations Board’s (the Board) regional director in Region 31 issued a complaint against the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the Pac-12 Conference, and the University of...more
On May 1, 2023, the National Labor Relations Board (the Board) issued its decision in Lion Elastomers LLC II and made it more difficult for employers to discipline employees for misconduct and outbursts. Now employers must...more
5/5/2023
/ Discipline ,
Dispute Resolution ,
Employee Misconduct ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Profanity ,
Unions
On April 20, 2023, the National Labor Relations Board (the Board) issued its decision in Noah’s Ark Processors, LLC (Noah’s Ark), holding that Noah’s Ark, a Nebraska meat processor, violated the National Labor Relations Act...more
On December 14, 2022, the National Labor Relations Board (the Board) issued a major decision in American Steel Construction that makes it easier for unions to petition for smaller units of an entire workforce for purposes of...more
On October 31, 2022, Jennifer A. Abruzzo, General Counsel for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), issued a Memorandum regarding new challenges that employers will face for the electronic monitoring and algorithmic...more
11/14/2022
/ Algorithms ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Monitoring ,
Enforcement ,
GPS ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
NLRB General Counsel ,
Surveillance
On September 6, 2022, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) proposed a new rule to expand the definition of “joint employer” under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). If the proposed rule is adopted, a party will be...more
9/12/2022
/ Browning-Ferris Industries of California Inc. ,
Comment Period ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Joint Employers ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Terms and Conditions
On August 29, 2022, the National Labor Relations Board (the Board) issued a major decision in Tesla Inc. that reversed a previous standard set by the Board in 2019. Previously, employers enjoyed substantial discretion to...more
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or the Board) General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo filed a brief in a pending case on Monday, April 11, 2022, requesting the revival of a 1949 doctrine that would allow unions the ability...more
National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or the Board) General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo indicated in a memo to regional directors this week that she is seeking to ban mandatory employee meetings, a tool that has been utilized by...more
The D.C. Circuit overturned a decision that allowed Chicago-area hotel workers (housekeepers and food and beverage staff) to form extremely narrow bargaining units. In its decision, the D.C. Circuit held that the NLRB failed...more
On September 22, 2020, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) unveiled a new, proposed rule for classifying workers as either independent contractors or employees. This is important because employees are covered by the federal...more
9/25/2020
/ Class Action ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Definition ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misclassification ,
NLRB ,
Proposed Rules ,
State Labor Laws ,
Trump Administration ,
Wage and Hour
The NLRB in General Motors on Tuesday reversed an agency judge’s ruling which provided that the employer, General Motors, violated the NLRA by suspending a worker who used the F-word at his supervisor. By adopting the “Wright...more
Earlier this week, the NLRB made official a less stringent standard on joint employer liability, returning to a decades old approach which had been applied until the NLRB’s decision in 2015 which made the standard less...more
On December 17, 2019, the National Labor Relations Board issued two decisions that reversed troubling precedents and restored rights to employers. First, the NLRB reiterated that employers have a right to control the use of...more
12/23/2019
/ Confidential Information ,
Data Privacy ,
Email ,
Email Policies ,
Employee Privacy Rights ,
Employer Rights ,
Employment Policies ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Right to Control ,
Unions ,
Workplace Communication ,
Workplace Investigations
On December 13, 2019, the National Labor Relations Board modified regulations implemented by the NLRB in 2015 that dramatically accelerated the complex union election process. The 2015 rules were appropriately nicknamed the...more
On February 26, 2018, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) issued an Order vacating its decision in Hy-Brand Industrial Contractors, Ltd. and Brandt Construction Co., 365 NLRB No. 156 (2017) (“Hy-Brand”). The decision...more
3/7/2018
/ Browning-Ferris Industries of California Inc. ,
Collective Bargaining ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Joint Employers ,
Labor Policies ,
NLRB ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Staffing Agencies ,
Trump Administration ,
Unions ,
Vacated
The joint employer standard, which is used to determine the extent to which one employer may become liable for obligations of another, has long been a very politically-charged issue. It therefore comes as no surprise that...more
12/21/2017
/ Browning-Ferris Industries of California Inc. ,
Collective Bargaining ,
Franchisee ,
Franchisors ,
Independent Contractors ,
Joint Employers ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Staffing Agencies ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour