A number of significant decisions were issued by the National Labor Relations Board in 2012, including many in the final days of the term of member Brian Hayes. As of this writing, the board continues with only three members, all Democratic appointees: Chairman Mark Gaston Pearce and members Richard Griffin
Section 7
Speak No Evil: NLRB ALJ Finds Confidentiality and Non-Disparagement Provisions in Quicken Loans Employment Agreement Violate the NLRA
By: Ashley Kircher
On Tuesday, an NLRB administrative law judge ruled that two provisions in an employment agreement signed by all of Quicken Loans, Inc.’s mortgage bankers violated Section 8(a)(1) of the National Labor Relations Act. See Quicken Loans, Inc., Case No. 28-CA-75857. ALJ Joel Biblowitz found that the provisions, which were meant to…
NLRB Argues To The Fourth Circuit That The Court Should Uphold Its NLRA Rights Poster Rule
By Ronald J. Kramer.
On September 28, 2012, the NLRB filed its opening brief in the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals case challenging the South Carolina district court’s April 13, 2012 decision invalidating the NLRB’s NLRA rights poster rule. NLRB v. Chamber of Commerce of the United States et al., Case No. 12-1757…
The NLRB’s Exaltation Of Section 7 Rights: A Preview of Roundy’s and Granting Unions Access To Employers’ E-mail Systems
Not to put it too indelicately, but has the NLRB made a fetish of the Section 7 right to engage in “concerted activities . . . for mutual aid or protection” — in the sense of rendering it excessive attention, even reverence? One can easily conclude from its recent decisions…
Should My Company Adopt A “Model” Social Media Policy Or Stick With Our Own?
As we’ve blogged about in an earlier post, Acting General Counsel Lafe Solomon has issued the third in a series of “Reports” regarding social media policies, in which he addressed overly broad restrictions regarding confidentiality, standards of decorum on a website, fraternization with fellow employees, the airing grievances online,…
NLRB Questions Rule Prohibiting Access To Off-Duty Employees
Employer rules prohibiting off-duty employees from returning to the worksite are generally lawful provided they meet the three-part test established in Tri-County Medical Center, 222 NLRB 1089 (1976). Under this test, a rule prohibiting off-duty employee access to a facility is valid if it limits access solely to the…
NLRB Region 28 Stretches To Raise Concerns About At-Will Employment Provisions
A disturbing trend is beginning to appear. The NLRB, or at least Region 28, is issuing and prosecuting complaints alleging that “at will” employment provisions in employee handbook acknowledgement forms (and presumably handbooks and employment applications) interfere with employees’ Section 7 rights to engage in protected concerted activity. Although we are…
The Future Of Employment Arbitration At Stake
In a case that directly affects the future of employment arbitration in the U.S. and the ability of U.S. employers to protect themselves against costly and often frivolous class action claims, briefs were filed this week by business groups, including an amicus brief that Seyfarth Shaw filed on behalf of the…