Labor

  • August 19, 2026

    4th Circ. Ends Immigration Judges' Free Speech Suit

    The Fourth Circuit on Wednesday affirmed that a district court lacked authority to hear a suit from an immigration judges' union challenging a policy barring judges from speaking publicly about immigration without prior approval.

  • August 19, 2026

    Feds Urge Wash. Court To Back Axing Dam Workers' CBA

    The Trump administration urged a Washington federal court to deny a labor union's bid to block the government from terminating a collective bargaining agreement covering hydropower dam workers, arguing that appellate courts have rejected similar injunction requests from other unions.

  • August 18, 2026

    Southwest's Religious Bias Memo To End Contempt Flap

    A Texas federal judge on Tuesday ordered Southwest Airlines to send flight attendants a statement saying the company isn't allowed to discriminate based on religion, in order to dissolve a contempt finding in a case from a flight attendant who successfully claimed her views on abortion got her fired.

  • August 18, 2026

    Big Tech, PTAB Attys Urge Justices To Fix USPTO Power Grab

    The Federal Circuit's refusal to curb the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office director's power over instituting Patent Trial and Appeal Board challenges has allowed leaders to "wreak havoc" without accountability, top tech companies have warned the U.S. Supreme Court.

  • August 18, 2026

    Union Locals Must Arbitrate Probation Row, Judge Says

    A Service Employees International Union local must arbitrate a dispute over its decision to extend a union employee's probationary period by 180 days, a California federal judge has ruled, finding that the United Auto Workers local representing the worker followed the proper procedure for pursuing a grievance.

  • August 18, 2026

    NLRB 'BLM' Cases Hinge On Ties To Workplace, Experts Say

    A recent National Labor Relations Board decision finding Whole Foods was within its rights to bar employees from wearing Black Lives Matter messages at work shows how fact-specific the board's analysis of protections for political advocacy remains even after a Biden board decision that found similar displays lawful, experts said.

  • August 18, 2026

    UAW Says It Doesn't Belong In GM Worker's Bias Suit

    The United Auto Workers shouldn't be a defendant in a lawsuit filed by a General Motors employee who alleged that she experienced disability discrimination in the workplace, the union argued, telling a Tennessee federal judge that it hasn't discriminated against the employee in any way.

  • August 18, 2026

    United Beats Most Claims In Flight Attendants' Wage Suit

    A New Jersey federal judge on Tuesday tossed three state wage claims brought by United Airlines flight attendants in a suit alleging they were not paid for preflight, post-flight and layover work, finding federal labor law requires the disputes to be resolved through arbitration rather than in court.

  • August 18, 2026

    Research Co. Fired Worker Over Pay Talk, NLRB Judge Says

    A clinical research company violated federal labor law by firing a worker who discussed payroll issues with other employees, a National Labor Relations Board judge has ruled, rejecting the company's argument that the worker was an independent contractor.

  • August 18, 2026

    NLRB Defends Remedy In Meat Distributor Layoff Case

    A New York meat distributor can't ask the D.C. Circuit to forbid the National Labor Relations Board from making employers cover workers' layoff-related expenses when the layoff violates federal labor law, as the distributor never raised this argument before the board, the agency said.

  • August 18, 2026

    Shell Units Wrongly Withheld Race Data, NLRB Judge Says

    Three Shell affiliates violated federal labor law by refusing to give United Steelworkers the racial demographics of their employees, a National Labor Relations Board judge ruled, finding that the information was relevant due to the nondiscrimination language in the collective bargaining agreement between the parties.

  • August 17, 2026

    NLRB Official Sets Union Vote By Mail At Utah Tiling Co.

    A union representation election at a Utah tile installation company should take place by mail-in ballot because certain voters and jobsites are scattered outside the company's Salt Lake City facility, the head of the National Labor Relations Board's Denver regional office has determined.

  • August 17, 2026

    GM Can't Use Prior Deal Defense To Halt Bias Suit, Judge Says

    A Tennessee federal judge on Monday rejected General Motors' bid to toss an employee's lawsuit alleging the company failed to promote her because of her sex, rejecting the company's claim that the employee was barred from suing over allegations the parties previously resolved.

  • August 17, 2026

    Remark Over Union Organizing Illegal, NLRB Judge Says

    An Oregon medical center violated federal labor law when a labor consultant told employees they would have a hard time improving their health insurance options in bargaining if they unionized, a National Labor Relations Board judge held Monday, saying the remark went beyond describing the uncertainty present in bargaining.

  • August 17, 2026

    Strike Questions At Fore As Calif. Gig Drivers Near Unionizing

    Uber and Lyft drivers in California are poised to be among the first gig economy workers in the nation to labor under a collective bargaining agreement after the state accepted a union's proof of support, but the strength of that deal may hinge on the union's capability to mobilize a large, sprawling unit.

  • August 17, 2026

    Hartford HealthCare Told To Double-Check Privilege Claims

    Hartford HealthCare has agreed to re-review 113 documents over which the hospital operator asserted attorney-client privilege in an antitrust lawsuit by a Teamsters health plan and a local Connecticut transit district, following a federal magistrate judge's concerns about a nearly 1,000-page privilege log.

  • August 17, 2026

    Judge Blocks Creamery Closure After Union Retaliation Claim

    A Vermont federal judge blocked the closure of a century-old creamery in the city of St. Albans on Monday, saying a Teamsters local convincingly argued that the billion-dollar dairy cooperative that acquired the creamery in 2019 is shuttering the facility to retaliate against the union for striking last fall.

  • August 17, 2026

    Littler Names Firm's First Pro Bono Counsel

    Littler Mendelson PC announced Monday that it had appointed its first pro bono counsel to enhance the firm's efforts supporting access to justice.

  • August 17, 2026

    7th Circ. Reverses Alcoa Union Retirees' Lifetime Benefits Win

    The Seventh Circuit reversed an Indiana federal court's decision holding that certain union retirees of aluminum giant Alcoa and their beneficiaries had a vested right to health benefits for life, finding error with the lower court's judicial estoppel analysis that formed the basis for its judgment on liability.

  • August 14, 2026

    NLRB Won't Rethink Hearing Order In Union Vote Row

    A split National Labor Relations Board on Friday declined to revisit an agency official's order setting a hearing on a union's objections to a representation election at a Mississippi energy company, with one member saying the official didn't explain how the allegations could be grounds for setting aside the election.

  • August 14, 2026

    SAG-AFTRA Plan Members Seek Final OK Of Data Breach Deal

    Members of the SAG-AFTRA Health Plan have asked a California federal court for final approval of a $950,000 class action settlement resolving claims that a 2024 data breach exposed the personal and medical information of approximately 94,000 plan members.

  • August 14, 2026

    ASU Targeted Food Workers' Wage Protests, Union Says

    Arizona State University placed overly broad restrictions on union members' campus protests over the wages of university food service workers and used unreasonable force to arrest two union protestors during graduation, a UNITE HERE local has alleged in a lawsuit filed in Arizona federal court.

  • August 14, 2026

    NY Forecast: Judge Weighs Tossing Cancer Gene Bias Suit

    This week, a New York federal judge will consider a shared workspace operator's request to dismiss a lawsuit brought by a former worker who claims she was forced out of her job after being diagnosed with a genetic mutation that restricted her ability to work.

  • August 14, 2026

    Worker Says GM Can't Escape FMLA, Bias Claims

    A General Motors assembly plant worker who alleges the company repeatedly disciplined her for taking disability-related medical leave has urged a Tennessee federal court to reject GM's bid to dismiss her case, arguing her claims are adequately pleaded and that the automaker's own conduct demonstrates unlawful discrimination.

  • August 14, 2026

    Calif. Forecast: SEIU Local, UAW Local In Probation Dispute

    In the week ahead, attorneys should watch for a hearing on respective arbitration and dismissal bids in a dispute involving a United Auto Workers local and a Service Employees International Union local. Here's a look at that case and other labor and employment matters on deck in California.

Expert Analysis

  • 5 NLRA Changes To Make Nonunion Employers Wary In 2024

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    As the National Labor Relations Board continues pushing an aggressive pro-union agenda and a slate of strict workplace rules, nonunion employers should study significant labor law changes from 2023 to understand why National Labor Relations Act compliance will be so crucial to protecting themselves in the new year, say attorneys at Hunton.

  • NLRA Expansion May Come With Risks For Workers

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    The last few years have seen a rapid expansion of the National Labor Relations Act to increase labor law coverage in as many ways and to as many areas as possible, but this could potentially weaken rather than strengthen support for unions and worker rights in the U.S., says Daniel Johns at Cozen O’Connor.

  • What The NLRB Wants Employers To Know Post-Cemex

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    Recent guidance from the National Labor Relations Board illuminates prosecutorial goals following Cemex Construction Materials, a decision that upended decades of precedent, and includes several notable points to which employers should pay close attention, say attorneys at Perkins Coie.

  • Top 10 Employer Resolutions For 2024

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    From technological leaps to sea changes in labor policy to literal sea changes, 2024 provides opportunities for employers to face big-picture questions that will shape their business for years to come, say Allegra Lawrence-Hardy and Lisa Haldar at Lawrence & Bundy.

  • Cos. Should Be On Guard After Boom In Unfair Labor Claims

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    The National Labor Relations Board's recent expansion of protected activity and imposition of case-by-case policies led to a historic boom in unfair labor practice charges in 2023, so companies should prepare for labor complaints to increase in 2024 by conducting risk assessments and implementing compliance plans, say Daniel Schudroff and Lorien Schoenstedt at Jackson Lewis.

  • 3 Developments That Will Affect Hospitality Companies In 2024

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    As the hospitality industry continues its post-pandemic recovery, it faces both challenges and opportunities to thrive in 2024, including navigating new labor rules, developing branded residential living spaces and cautiously embracing artificial intelligence, says Lauren Stewart at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Top 10 Whistleblowing And Retaliation Events Of 2023

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and federal and state courts made 2023 another groundbreaking year for whistleblower litigation and retaliation developments, including the SEC’s massive whistleblower awards, which are likely to continue into 2024 and further incentivize individuals to submit tips, say attorneys at Proskauer.

  • Starbucks Raise Ruling Highlights Labor Law Catch-22

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    A National Labor Relations Board judge recently ruled that Starbucks violated federal labor law when it gave raises to nonunion employees only, demonstrating that conflicts present in workforces with both union and nonunion employees can put employers in no-win situations if they don't consider how their actions will be interpreted, say attorneys at Duane Morris.

  • Del. Ruling Shows Tension Between 363 Sale And Labor Law

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    The Delaware federal court's ruling in the Braeburn Alloy Steel case highlights the often overlooked collision between an unstayed order authorizing an asset sale free and clear of successor liability under Section 363 of the Bankruptcy Code and federal labor law imposing successor liability on the buyer, say attorneys at Proskauer.

  • How AI Executive Order Aims To Compete For Foreign Talent

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    Immigration provisions within the Biden administration's executive order on artificial intelligence take a strategic approach to promoting the U.S. as a destination for AI and STEM talent by streamlining visa processing, enhancing educational and exchange programs, and improving current visa programs and pathways to permanent residency, says Eric Bord at Morgan Lewis.

  • A Gov't Contractor's Guide To Davis-Bacon Prevailing Wages

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    In light of shifting federal infrastructure priorities and recent updates to U.S. Department of Labor regulations, employers should take the time to revisit the basics of prevailing wage requirements for federal contractors under the Davis-Bacon Act and similar laws, says Timothy Taylor at Holland & Knight.

  • Business Takeaways From Biden's Global Labor Rights Memo

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    President Joe Biden's recent memorandum on protecting worker rights is one of the most expansive statements the administration has made regarding international labor rights policy, and reflects several points of which businesses should take note, including the government’s interest in working with the private sector on these issues and a notable focus on the transition to clean energy, say Tom Plotkin and Pegah Nabili at Covington.

  • How Employers Should Prep For NLRB, OSHA Collaboration

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    The National Labor Relations Board and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s recent announcement of increased interagency cooperation may suggest that each agency will be expanding its scope of inquiry moving forward, and signals that employers need to be prepared for inspections that implicate both OSHA and NLRB issues, say attorneys at Baker Donelson.

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