Labor

  • September 05, 2023

    Bus Driver Loses 2nd Circ. Union Dues Appeal

    A bus driver who sued her former labor unions over deductions taken after her departure lost her appeal Tuesday in the Second Circuit, which said her constitutional rights were not violated.

  • September 05, 2023

    Meat Processor Bargained In Bad Faith, NLRB Tells 8th Circ.

    A meat processor in Nebraska is a "flagrant violator" of federal labor law, the National Labor Relations Board told the Eighth Circuit, defending its issuance of broader remedies after finding the company bargained in bad faith with a United Food and Commercial Workers local.

  • September 01, 2023

    Union Claims HVAC Co. Created Alter Ego To Avoid Dues

    A Virginia heating and air conditioning company created an alter ego and laid off its unionized workers in an attempt to shake its collectively bargained obligations to provide nearly $100,000 in benefits fund obligations, a union alleged in a suit filed in Virginia federal court Friday.

  • September 01, 2023

    Kaiser Permanente, Union Look To Shake Low-Staffing Claims

    Kaiser Permanente and a health care workers union entered dueling bids to shake responsibility for claims of breaching obligations to ensure sufficient staffing levels at health care facilities.

  • September 01, 2023

    NLRB's Clarified Bias Test Puts Employers On Alert

    The National Labor Relations Board may have framed a recent decision on its standard for vetting anti-union bias claims as a clarification, but its ruling nonetheless signals that the agency won't need piles of direct evidence to find violations.

  • September 01, 2023

    Labor Sees Potential For Gains In 'Summer Of Strikes'

    Organized labor labeled this summer the Summer of Strikes ahead of multiple anticipated high-profile work stoppages, an uptick in labor activity that experts and advocates say reflects changing views from workers and the broader public.

  • September 01, 2023

    11th Circ. OKs VA's Jury Win In Nurse's Union Retaliation Suit

    A Florida federal court didn't err when it instructed a jury that later found the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs didn't retaliate against a nurse for his union activities, the Eleventh Circuit ruled Friday, affirming the jury's verdict in favor of the department.

  • September 01, 2023

    NY Forecast: 2nd Circ. Hears Bid To Revive Bias Suit

    This week, the Second Circuit will hear a former health care company employee's attempt to revive a lawsuit claiming the company unlawfully discriminated against her based on her perceived relationship status because she had a child with a co-worker before her employment. Here, Law360 explores this and other major labor and employment cases on the docket in New York.

  • September 01, 2023

    NLRB Official OKs Union Election For Alaska Ship Workers

    A National Labor Relations Board regional director is permitting 25 oil tanker ship officers to vote for unionization, rejecting their employers' arguments that the officers were ineligible supervisors or that the voting unit should be expanded to include more than 100 other workers.

  • September 01, 2023

    Fox Rothschild Adds Labor Pro With In-House Expertise

    Fox Rothschild LLP has added a labor expert with more 20 years of experience as counsel to its labor management relations team in the Dallas office, the firm said Thursday.

  • September 01, 2023

    Calif. Forecast: Drug Tester Seeks Discrimination Case Appeal

    In the coming week, attorneys should watch for a potential ruling on whether a drug testing provider can appeal to the Ninth Circuit a ruling in a proposed class action alleging that testing hair for drugs resulted in race discrimination. Here's a look at that case and other labor and employment matters coming up in California.

  • August 31, 2023

    NLRB Escapes Suit Over 'Captive Audience' Memo

    A Texas federal judge on Thursday threw out of First Amendment-based challenge to the National Labor Relations Board general counsel's statement that employers violate labor law when they force workers to sit through meetings discouraging unionization, saying the statement is an "unreviewable prosecutorial decision" that precludes the court's jurisdiction.

  • August 31, 2023

    NLRB Shifts Playing Field On Employer Unilateral Changes

    The National Labor Relations Board's decisions overturning a President Donald Trump-era standard that gave employers more leeway to make unilateral changes to employees' working conditions is likely to make employers bargain over more issues after their labor contracts expire and lead unions to be bolder in demanding negotiations, experts said.

  • August 31, 2023

    Prudential Failed To Protect Personal Info, Suit Says

    Prudential Insurance Co. and two software companies failed to protect the personal information of thousands of participants in a Teamsters pension plan from an attack on a file-sharing tool believed to be carried out by Russian hackers, a plan participant told a Massachusetts federal court.

  • August 31, 2023

    Broadcast Union Members, Local Settle Trusteeship Fight

    Members of a broadcast union local saw the temporary restraining order dissolving a trusteeship placed upon them by the broader union's leadership converted to a permanent injunction and also got a payout for the costs of that trusteeship in a consent judgment filed in Illinois federal court.

  • August 31, 2023

    NLRB Urges 9th Circ. To Keep Restaurant Bargaining Decision

    A Los Angeles restaurant failed to bargain in good faith with a UNITE HERE local before COVID-19 hit and can't use the pandemic as an excuse to duck the union, the National Labor Relations Board told the Ninth Circuit, urging the appeals court to uphold a board decision from December.

  • August 31, 2023

    ​​​​​​​NLRB Says DC Circ. Shouldn't Rehear Ballot Signature Spat

    The D.C. Circuit must deny a Colorado hospital's bid for reconsideration of the appeals court's ruling that a nurse cast a valid ballot in a close union representation election, the NLRB argued, saying the signature on the ballot followed agency rules. 

  • August 31, 2023

    US Chamber Tells Senate To Hold Off On NLRB Nomination

    The U.S. Chamber of Commerce told the U.S. Senate that Gwynne Wilcox's nomination for another term on the National Labor Relations Board should not move to a final vote until President Joe Biden nominates a Republican to the board.

  • August 31, 2023

    Labor Law Protects Advocacy For Nonemployees, NLRB Says

    The National Labor Relations Board held in a decision released Thursday that federal labor law protects workers who advocate for nonemployees, such as interns, reversing a Trump-era ruling that allowed employers to punish workers for aiding unprotected colleagues.

  • August 31, 2023

    Musk Tweet Wasn't Threat, Tesla Tells Full 5th Circ.

    Elon Musk's tweet questioning why Tesla employees at a California plant would pay union dues is protected by the First Amendment, the company said, telling the full Fifth Circuit that a panel erred in upholding the National Labor Relations Board's ruling to delete the tweet.

  • August 31, 2023

    NLRB Boosts Protections For Solo Job Actions

    Federal labor law protects protests by individual workers that could prompt future group actions, the National Labor Relations Board said in a decision released Thursday, lowering its bar for concluding that single-worker actions constitute protected organizing activity.

  • August 30, 2023

    NLRB Judge Says Bus Co. Rejected Steward Over Union Work

    A Washington, D.C., bus contractor violated federal labor law by refusing to rehire a former employee because of his union activism, a National Labor Relations Board judge said Wednesday, citing a "record laden with animus" toward the worker's labor activity.

  • August 30, 2023

    NYC Fire Inspectors Reach $29.2M Deal In Race, Pay Bias Suit

    New York City has agreed to pay $29.2 million to end a class action alleging that white fire protection inspectors were subjected to the same racist pay disparities their nonwhite colleagues alleged they faced, according to a Wednesday filing in federal court.

  • August 30, 2023

    Gallup Poll Finds Slight Dip In Pro-Labor Sentiments

    Americans' support for unions dipped from a multi-decade high this year but remains strong amid a series of high-profile strikes and contract negotiations, according to data released Wednesday by polling service Gallup.

  • August 30, 2023

    Brewing Union Can Comprise 2 Facilities, NLRB Official Says

    Workers at two separate facilities of a Georgia brewery hold jobs that are similar enough to be part of the same union, a National Labor Relations Board official ruled, approving the union election.

Expert Analysis

  • Company Considerations For Cash Award Incentives: Part 2

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
    Author Photo

    Cash awards can help companies address some issues associated with equity awards to compensate employees, but due to potential downsides, they should be treated as a tool in a long-term incentive program rather than a panacea, say Denise Glagau and Kela Shang at Baker McKenzie.

  • Why Minor League Labor Negotiations Will Be Complicated

    Author Photo

    Despite the Major League Baseball voluntarily recognizing the recently announced Minor League Baseball union and avoiding a potentially contentious process, the forthcoming labor negotiations will be complex for multiple reasons — from minor leaguer demographics to the specter of antitrust scrutiny, says Christopher Deubert at Constangy Brooks.

  • Alternatives For Employers Considering Workforce Reduction

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
    Author Photo

    Employers' reduction in force decisions can be costly, increase exposure to employment lawsuits and lower morale of remaining employees, but certain other approaches can help reduce labor costs while minimizing the usual consequences, say Andrew Sommer and Megan Shaked at Conn Maciel.

  • How Weingarten Rights May Operate In A Nonunion Workplace

    Author Photo

    A recent National Labor Relations Board memo signals an interest in giving nonunion employees a right to have a coworker representative present in disciplinary hearings, but concerned employers may find solace in limits the agency has placed on union employees' Weingarten rights over the years, say David Pryzbylski and Thomas Payne at Barnes & Thornburg.

  • Employer Discipline Lessons In DC Circ. Vulgar Protest Ruling

    Author Photo

    The D.C. Circuit's recent ruling in Constellium Rolled Products v. NLRB — that a worker was improperly fired for using profanity while protesting company policy — highlights confusion surrounding worker protections for concerted activity and the high bar for employers to prove discipline is unrelated to such activity, say John Hargrove and Anne Yuengert at Bradley Arant.

  • NLRB Reversal On Union Apparel Is A Warning For Employers

    Author Photo

    The National Labor Relations Board's recent reversal of Trump-era case law in its Tesla ruling significantly limits when employers may restrict union insignia on clothing in the workplace and provides multiple cautionary takeaways for employers, say attorneys at Shipman & Goodwin.

  • Proposed NLRB Rule Would Vastly Expand Joint Employment

    Author Photo

    The National Labor Relations Board’s recently proposed rule for determining when joint employment exists would replace a 2020 standard with expansive new definitions, including the problematic addition of workplace health and safety as an essential term and condition, says Todd Lebowitz at BakerHostetler.

  • Key Takeaways From Calif.'s Sweeping Fast-Food Wage Law

    Author Photo

    California Gov. Gavin Newsom recently signed a controversial wage bill that will have a major impact on fast-food employers and employees, will likely shape how the state regulates other industries in the future, and represents a radical step toward sectoral bargaining, says Pooja Nair at Ervin Cohen.

  • Prepare For NLRB Collaboration With Antitrust Agencies

    Author Photo

    The National Labor Relations Board's recent agreements with the Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice may herald increased interagency engagement on noncompete and no-poach issues, so companies that face scrutiny from one agency may well quickly be in the crosshairs of another, say attorneys at BakerHostetler.

  • Watson Discipline Case Shows NFL's Power In Labor Disputes

    Author Photo

    While the six-game suspension a disciplinary officer recently ordered against Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson aligns with labor law standards, the NFL has authority to increase the punishment with little to no recourse for Watson or the NFL Players Association — thanks to the 2016 “Deflategate” case, says Michael Elkins at MLE Law.

  • Why Gig Platforms Should Be On Alert

    Author Photo

    The Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general have set their sights on the gig economy and practices they view as deceptive and unfair, which will open gig platforms to more scrutiny — and past cases against gig-economy giants including Uber and Instacart are cautionary tales to keep in mind, say attorneys at Venable.

  • What New Captive Audience Law Means For Conn. Employers

    Author Photo

    Given a new Connecticut law that allows employees to opt out of captive audience meetings where employers share religious or political opinions, companies will need to address the liability risks posed by this substantial expansion of employee free speech rights, say attorneys at Shipman & Goodwin.

  • More Employment Regs May See 'Major Questions' Challenges

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent use of the major questions doctrine to strike down regulation has already been cited in lower court cases challenging U.S. Department of Labor authority to implement wage and hour changes, and could provide a potent tool to litigants seeking to restrain federal workplace and labor regulations, say Jeffrey Brecher and Courtney Malveaux at Jackson Lewis.

Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Employment Authority Labor archive.