Since 1978, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has treated witness statements as exempt from an employer’s general duty to furnish information to unions under Section 8(a)(5) of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). The NLRB first articulated this rule in Anheuser-Busch, Inc., 237 NLRB 982, 984–985 (1978), where the Board held that the general duty to furnish information “does not encompass the duty to furnish witness statements themselves.” Although the Board generally required an employer to provide summaries of the content of witness statements, under Anheuser-Busch, an employer could lawfully refuse to provide the witness statements themselves. A key policy rationale for this categorical rule was to protect the integrity of employer investigations and to protect witnesses from reprisal and intimidation, particularly employees who provided incriminating information against fellow bargaining unit members.
Home > Federal Law Articles > Labor Law > General (Labor Law) > Board Overrules Longstanding Protections Against Disclosure of Witness Statements