National labor relations act

On June 21, 2013, The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) issued an order affirming and modifying an earlier decision by an administrative law judge that invalidated the confidentiality provision in an employer’s employment contract.  In the case of Quicken Loans, Inc., the NLRB held that the “Proprietary/Confidentiality” provision in the contract contained language that unlawfully interfered with employees’ rights to engage in “protected concerted activities” under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA).1   However, this case leaves questions for employers which utilize confidentiality policies and agreements in an effort to protect employee private information.Section 7 of the NLRA specifically protects employees who engage in “concerted activities for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid or protection ....”  This statutory provision has been interpreted by the NLRB … [Read more...] about Labor Board Affirms Ruling that Employer Confidentiality Provision Violates National Labor Relations Act (NLRA)

Employers in the gaming and hospitality arena are eagerly awaiting the results of the upcoming changes to the legal landscape that are expected to emerge from a business-oriented administration. These employers have long tried to reduce the costs and length of litigation, particularly in the context of wage and hour claims, by requiring employees to arbitrate work-related disputes on a bilateral, rather than collective or class-wide, basis.The Trump administration has already begun to change course regarding the legality of class action waivers, which is affecting employers in dozens of cases. In a rather expected move, the Department of Justice now says it no longer believes that class action waivers in arbitration agreements infringe upon workers’ Section 7 rights under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). On June 16, the Department of Justice filed an amicus brief with the Supreme Court in NLRB v. Murphy Oil USA, Inc., which oral arguments on this issue are scheduled … [Read more...] about The DOJ’s Evolving View of the Interplay Between the Federal Arbitration Act and the National Labor Relations Act

I’m almost afraid to tell you about this decision because I don’t want to gossip, but, we now know, based upon an NLRB ALJ’s decision last week, a broad no gossip policy violates the National Labor Relations Act. Laurus Technical College has a policy that prohibits employees from participating in or instigating "gossip about the company, an employee, or customer." The policy defines gossip as "an activity that can drain, corrupt, distract and down-shift the company’s productivity, moral, and overall satisfaction. It has the potential to destroy an individual and is counterproductive to an organization.”  Gossip is further defined as  "1) Talking about a person’s personal life when they are not present; 2) Talking about a person’s professional life without his/her supervisor present; 3) Negative, or untrue, or disparaging comments or criticisms of another person or persons; 4) Creating, sharing, or repeating information that can … [Read more...] about No Gossiping Rule Violates National Labor Relations Act (NLRA)

One of your top workers, Emily Employee, comes to you distraught: She can no longer take Carla Co-Worker’s harassing comments about Emily’s religion. Some of the comments Emily relayed to you sound pretty bad and would result in very negative publicity if they were publicized. No problem, you think, we’ve got a stellar internal investigation policy. We’ll just interview everyone, direct them to keep the investigation confidential, determine whether Carla has been making offensive comments, and discipline employees as outlined in our employee handbook. No one but Emily and Carla will know the difference, right? Not so fast.The National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) protects employees’ rights to “engage in concerted activities for the purpose of . . . mutual aid or protection.” This protection extends to all employees, including those employed in non-unionized workplaces. This protection includes any concerted activity (two or more employees) … [Read more...] about Heard It Through the Grapevine: The National Labor Relations Act’s Tight Grip on Employer Confidentiality Policies

If two Republican United States Senators have their way, membership on the National Labor Relations Board will be increased from five to six, and other  significant changes will be made to the National Labor Relations Act.The “National Labor Relations Board Reform Act,” introduced on September 16 by Senators Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and Mitch McConnell (R-KY), would alter the way the nation’s principal labor relations law works.According to Senator Alexander’s press announcement, the bill will “end partisan advocacy,” “rein in the General Counsel,” and “encourage timely decision-making.”The bill would make the following changes to the Act, among others:Increase Board membership from five to six.Three members would have to be from each major political party.Instead of Board members being appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate, they would be “appointed by the President, after consultation with the leader … [Read more...] about Republican Senators Propose to Make Significant Changes to NLRA – National Labor Relations Act