Many of us on the management side have been wondering and speculating as to what changes the new NLRB will be making now that Trump’s appointees have been confirmed. Unlike many other agencies, at the NLRB, its General Counsel has the primary authority to set policy because his/her office acts as the prosecutor for unfair labor practice changes and has broad discretion to determine what charges will be prosecuted.
Articles Discussing General Labor Law Topics And The NLRA.
Labor Aspects in North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) Renegotiation
Few issues were more dramatically debated during the 2016 U.S. election than the country’s participation in trade agreements, particularly in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP). Since the election, the U.S. has withdrawn from TPP and is seeking renegotiation of NAFTA.
New NLRB GC Memorandum Signals Changes are Ahead
The National Labor Relations Board’s new General Counsel, Peter Robb, has wasted no time in taking steps to chart a new direction for the Board. Two weeks after being sworn in as General Counsel, Robb has issued Memorandum 18-02, instructing NLRB regional directors on which types of charges should be submitted to his office for advice, and rescinding policy memoranda issued by his predecessor. While the memorandum is relatively brief, its substance is significant and telling. Many of the contentious decisions issued and policy shifts undertaken by the prior administration will likely be getting a second look.
Congress One Step Closer to Restoring NLRB’s Joint Employer Standard
The U.S. House of Representatives has passed the “Save Local Business Act” (H.R. 3441), which would add a new, narrow definition of “employer” to the National Labor Relations Act (and the Fair Labor Standards Act) and which clarifies the definition of joint employment under both federal statutes.
Top Five Labor Law Developments for August 2017
Employees had no right to union representation in their employer’s peer review committee proceedings, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has ruled. Midwest Division – MMC, LLC, dba Menorah Medical Center v. NLRB, No. 15-1312 (D.C. Cir. Aug. 18, 2017).
Employers Take Note: Public’s Approval of Unions Goes Up, Gallup Reports
Apparently, reports of the demise of organized labor are greatly exaggerated. According to a Gallup poll conducted from August 2 to 6, 2017, 61% of adults answered that they approve when asked, “Do you approve or disapprove of unions?” This is the highest percentage since 2003, when 65% said they approve.
union kNOw – September 2017
Workers at Nissan’s factory in Canton, Mississippi, have strongly rejected representation by the United Auto Workers — 63% to 37% — despite a multi-year organizing campaign. Nissan spent enormous resources in a counter-campaign that included a local advertising blitz consisting of television commercial spots, newspaper and radio advertisements, and Spotify ads. Nissan’s expenditure to stay union-free in the traditionally union-free South provides a valuable lesson to employers: Do not be complacent about the prospect of unionization, regardless of location and organizing history.
NLRB Finds Sports Team’s Electronic-Content Workers Employees Eligible To Unionize
The National Labor Relations Board has found the individuals who produce electronic content for viewing during professional basketball games are employees, rather than independent contractors. Minnesota Timberwolves Basketball, LP, 365 NLRB No. 124 (2017). The Board reversed the decision of an NLRB regional director and reinstated a representation petition filed by the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees. For more on this development, click here.
Bills in Congress Would Short-Cut ‘Quickie Election Rule,’ ‘Micro-Unit’ Reversals
With the recent confirmation of Marvin Kaplan to the National Labor Relations Board, the Obama (pro-union) Board is officially transitioning into a Trump (pro-business) Board. With that, Republicans hope, will come a change in the Board’s jurisprudence with respect to labor-friendly rulings by the Obama Board.
The Proof Is in the Pudding: How Lawyers Use Data to Vet Expert Witnesses
In this installment of the Big Data Initiative Podcast series, Dr. Zev Eigen, Global Director of Data Analytics with Littler, and Mark Torchiana, one of the founders of Courtroom Insight, discuss how technology enables lawyers to evaluate potential expert witnesses and other litigation professionals.
Labor Law Lessons from Our Favorite Films: Dirty Dancing
There are films with clear labor law undertones, such as On The Waterfront and Norma Rae. The National Labor Relations Act and its teachings, however, lurk in other pop culture examples.
Top Five Labor Law Developments for July 2017
The U.S. Senate narrowly confirmed Marvin Kaplan to one of two vacant seats on the National Labor Relations Board on August 2, 2017. Kaplan was sworn in on August 10. Kaplan is a former counsel to the Commissioner of the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. His confirmation leaves one vacant seat on the five-member Board. President Donald Trump has nominated William Emanuel, a management-side lawyer working in private practice, for the remaining seat.
Labor Law Update Summer 2017
Goldberg Segalla’s Labor Law Update keeps insurers, contractors, construction managers, developers, and other clients involved in construction informed about significant changes and cases involving New York’s “Scaffold Law” — Labor Law §§200, 240(1), and 241(6).
D.C. Circuit Rejects Labor Board Joint Employer Determination
On August 4, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit refused to enforce a holding by the National Labor Relations Board (Board) that the Cable News Network (CNN) was a joint employer.1 In the opinion, authored by Chief Judge Merrick Garland, the court found that the Board failed to adequately grapple with its conflicting precedent concerning what relationships constitute “joint employment.”
Top Five Labor Law Developments for June 2017
In an amicus brief filed with the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Department of Justice reversed itself and argued for the legality of mandatory arbitration agreement provisions waiving employees’ rights to bring class actions under the National Labor Relations Act.