News

 

Labor Relations items

  • NLRB Continues to Scrutinize Social Media Policies and Activities

    Date:
    13 May 2013

    Recent decisions from the full National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) as well as an NLRB Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) highlight the fact that social media policies and employee communications remain on the agency's radar and that it continues to uphold the right of both union and non-union employees to engage in protected concerted activity over social media networks.

  • NLRB Notice-Posting Rule Struck Down

    Date:
    09 May 2013

    The National Labor Relations Board (Board) rule requiring private employers to post a notice informing employees of their rights under the National Labor Relations Act (Act) has been struck down by a federal appeals court. Nat'l Ass'n of Mfrs v. NLRB, 2013 U.S. App. LEXIS 9231 (D.C. Cir. May 7, 2013). The Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia found the rule violated employers' right to free speech by compelling them to provide information concerning unionization, collective bargaining and other NLRA-protected activity without any reference to other rights such as the right to decertify a union or refuse to pay dues in a right-to-work state.

  • Another NLRB Ruling Protects Employee Social Media Complaints Regarding Supervisors

    Date:
    30 April 2013

    The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) continues to send a strong message to employers that the right of both union and nonunion employees to engage in protected concerted activity extends to social media communications.

  • NLRB Eases Restrictions on Workplace Investigations

    Date:
    30 April 2013

    The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) recently provided additional guidance on the legality of restricting employee discussion of ongoing internal investigations. In a recent Advice Memorandum, the NLRB clarified how employers can lawfully restrict employee discussion of ongoing investigations and provided sample language for employers to include in their workplace investigation policies.

  • NLRB Going Straight to Supreme Court for Review of Controversial Decision

    Date:
    14 March 2013

    The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is not wasting any time seeking resolution to the messy aftermath of the Noel Canning v. NLRB decision which essentially cast doubt on the validity of hundreds of NLRB decisions. In a March 12 statement, the NLRB announced that that it will forgo an "en banc" rehearing and instead bring its challenge directly to the Supreme Court.

  • "Right to Work" Issue Goes National

    Date:
    12 March 2013

    Employers across the country may soon be prohibited from effectively forcing employees to become members of a union based on legislation introduced in the House of Representatives on March 5. The bill, known as the "National Right To Work Act" (H.R. 946) and championed by Republican Steve King of Iowa, seeks to amend the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and the National Railway Act (NRA) which currently permit employers and unions to enter into agreements requiring union membership and the payment of dues as a condition of employment.

  • Sequestration May Impact Federal Contractors

    Date:
    01 March 2013

    If Congress and the White House do not reach a deal on the sequestration,employers with federal contracts should be prepared to take immediate action to deal with drastic cuts in government spending that will result. Federal contractors should anticipate how the sequestration will directly affect their workplace with respect to complying with Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act, wage and hour requirements, benefits and immigration status as well as unions and collective bargaining agreement issues. Employers should also expect possible lawsuits from workers laid off due to spending cuts.

  • Supreme Court to Resolve What Counts as 'Clothes' Under FLSA

    Date:
    19 February 2013

    The Supreme Court has agreed to hear Sandifer v. United States Steel Corp. and resolve a split in the circuits over what types of clothes-changing may be excluded from working time under section 203(o) of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

  • Union Pledges to Halt Attempts to Unionize Wal-Mart Employees

    Date:
    01 February 2013

    The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has announced that, for now, it will not decide Wal-Mart's unfair labor practice charge, which alleged that the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (Union) engaged in illegal picketing with the intent to unionize workers. Wal-Mart alleged in its charge that the Union violated the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) by picketing at its stores for more than 30 days with the intent of forming a union.

  • Union Membership Drops for Fifth Consecutive Year

    Date:
    30 January 2013

    The number of private and public sector employees who are union members has dropped for the fifth consecutive year, according to a new report. The annual report from the US Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released on January 23 found that the number of wage and salary workers belonging to a union declined to 14.4 million in 2012 from 14.8 million in 2011.

About this category

News: HR and legal considerations for employers regarding the management of labor relations. Support and guidance on the ever growing field of labor law.

© Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc.