Non-Unionized Employees do not have Weingarten Rights
Sherry L. Travers of Thompson, Coe, Cousins & Irons, LLP
A few years ago, we informed you that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and the National Labor Relations Board (Board), the federal agency charged with administrative oversight of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), had ruled that non-unionized employees, like their unionized counterparts, are entitled to co-worker representation during investigatory interviews they believe might result in discipline. This legal entitlement is commonly referred to as Weingarten rights.
NLRB Says Contingent Workers Can Be In User Employer's Bargaining Unit: Temp Agency May Have to Bargain Jointly with Union Representing Its Client's Employees
Mark Goldner of Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC
Flip-flopping once again, the National Labor Relations Board (Board) has reversed its precedent and decided that j.
The Facts On Union Certification By Card Check
Charles S. Caulkins of Fisher & Phillips LLP
Union membership in the United States has been declining for years. Fifty years ago, more than a third of America's workforce (about 35%) belonged to a union. Today, the number of union members is higher, but unions represent less than 8% of American workers in the private sector and just 12.5% of all workers. In an effort to reverse this trend, unions are using new tactics to organize workers.
The Splitting of the AFL-CIO: What It Means to the Nation's Employers
Gavin S. Appleby and Gerald T. Hathaway of Littler Mendelson, P.C.
The splitting of the AFL-CIO and the emergence of a separate union coalition, Change to Win, means employers must prepare themselves to operate in this new, aggressive union environment.
NLRB Rules That Weingarten Rights No Longer Apply to Non-Union Workforces
G. Mark Jodon of Littler Mendelson, P.C.
On June 9, 2004, the National Labor Relations Board ("NLRB") in IBM Corp., 341 NLRB No. 148, overruled its Epilepsy Foundation decision, which had granted non-union employees the right to be represented by a co-worker at an investigatory interview that could result in disciplinary action. Prior to the Epilepsy Foundation decision issued in 2000, the Board limited the right to representation at investigatory interviews to union-represented employees.
Locke v. Karass: Should the Court Overrule Lehnert's Test For Determining Whether Union Expenditures Are Related to Collective Bargaining?
Phineas E. Leahey of The Federalist Society
In the fall 2008 term, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear argument in Locke v. Karass, a case of more potential significance than suggested by the narrow question presented: whether, consistent with the First Amendment, the State may compel non-member employees to fund litigation by the affiliate of a union certified as their exclusive bargaining agent.
The California Tribal Labor Relations Ordinance: Overview and Analysis
Joseph E. Herman of Thelen LLP
This article summarizes the California Tribal Labor Relations Ordinance. In particular, this article discusses the legality of Indian gaming in California and how gaming is conditional on a tribe establishing a mechanism for the unionization of its employees. However, a tribe is not free to develop its own measures relating to unionization and must participate in the state-wide labor relations scheme established by the State of California in the Tribal Labor Relations Ordinance.
Unions Cheer as NLRB Overrules Four Representation Case Precedents
Nixon Peabody LLP
This article reviews four NLRB decisions that overruled long-standing case precedents.
NLRB Rules That Nonunion Employees Have a Right to Representation in Investigative Interviews (Weingarten rights)
Mark M. Lawson of Elliott, Lawson & Minor P.C.
In a July 10 decision, the National Labor Relations Board (the Board) ruled that nonunion employees are entitled to.
Nonunion Workers Now Have Right to Co-Worker Representation During Investigatory Interviews
Arent Fox LLP
This article summarizes a National Labor Relations Board decision that ruled that nonunion employees are entitled to have a co-worker present when summoned by the employer for an investigatory interview.
What's Good For The Goose . . . Enforcement Of No-Solicitation Policies
Smith, Currie & Hancock LLP
As noted elsewhere in this newsletter, union membership has been on the decline for quite some time. As membership.
Trends In Union Membership
Smith, Currie & Hancock LLP
The U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that the first increase in total union membersh.
Employment Law Alert: NRLB Restricts Challenges to a Union's Continued Majority Status
Nixon Peabody LLP
This article summarizes recent NRLB decisions.
Other People's Money...
Geoffrey William Hymans and Rob McKenna of The Federalist Society
Davenport v. Washington Educational Association had all the ingredients of a blockbuster: a campaign finance case with First Amendment speech and association claims, important federalism implications, and major players with significant resources (a large labor union and the State of Washington) on each side.
Bush Board Overrules M.B. Sturgis Rule Regarding Bargaining Units That Include Leased Employees
John Albert Lambremont and Andrew P. Marks of Littler Mendelson, P.C.
Temporary agency employees will no longer be included as part of a user employer's regular bargaining unit without both employers' consent.
Who Counts as a Supervisor Under Current Labor Law?
David B. Kern of Quarles & Brady LLP
More of your employees may be supervisors than you might think and they may be supervisors in ways which might surprise you.
Feelings Mixed As Workers Weigh Job Security Post September 11
Rosalee M. McNamara of Lathrop Gage
Key findings have been reported by a new Employment Law Alliance (ELA) poll, focusing on attitudes toward job security in the aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks. Contrary to popular perception, more than 60% of American workers are very confident that their employers are doing everything possible to avoid layoffs. Yet mixed feelings exist; workers are very anxious and extremely cautious about their job security.
Labor Board Reverses Field on Non-Union Disciplinary Interviews
James E. Boddy of Morrison & Foerster LLP
For the third time in 22 years, the National Labor Relations Board changed its mind on whether employers must accede to requests from non-union employees to have co-workers present for investigatory interviews.Ã As recently held in IBM Corp., 341 NLRB No. 148 (2004), the current view is that employers need not accede to such requests, though they may not retaliate against employees for asking.
Rules on Withdrawing Recognition from Unions Clarified
Barry R. Elson of Kittredge, Donley, Elson, Fullem & Embick, L.L.P.
The federal appellate court with jurisdiction in Pennsylvania recently affirmed a National Labor Relations Board.
Are Workplace Legislation and Judicial Protectionism Towards Employees Nudging Unions Towards Extinction -- Are Congress and the Courts Setting the Floor or Dropping the Bottom Out of Union Representa
Barry R. Elson of Kittredge, Donley, Elson, Fullem & Embick, L.L.P.
For approximately thirty years, federal and state legislatures, as well as the judiciary, have.
California Labor Relations Ordinance and the Tribal-State Gaming Compact
Joseph E. Herman of Thelen LLP
A detailed analysis of labor relations and Indian Gaming in California.
Fourth Circuit Allows Union's Appeals to Ethnicity during North Carolina Campaign
Duff, White & Turner, LLC
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has rejected an employer's attempt to set aside a union election .
Employers Can Require Separate Bargaining Units for Staffing Agency Employees
Sherry L. Travers of Thompson, Coe, Cousins & Irons, LLP
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board), the federal administrative agency that oversees the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), has once again reversed its position on a critical bargaining issue. Several years ago, the Board held that staffing agency employees who shared essential working conditions with the client-employer's regular employees could be included in the same bargaining unit, without either the client-employer's or staffing agency's consent.
Despite Victory for Employer, NLRB Decision Reminds Employers That Improper Handbook Language Can Overturn Election Results
Michael Mankes and Laurie Drew Hubbard of Littler Mendelson, P.C.
Although declining to overturn the results of a representation election in Delta Brands Inc., the NLRB's decision serves as a warning to employers that the Board will continue to scrutinize workplace policies and rules contained in employee handbooks.
No-Moonlighting Policy Can Protect Employers From Union Salts
Thomas M. Winn of Woods Rogers PLC
The Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals recently softened the blow of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision that paid.
Non-Union Employers Regain the Right to Conduct Investigatory Interviews Without a Co-Worker Present
Fredrick G. Lautz of Quarles & Brady LLP
In IBM Corp., the National Labor Relations Board ruled that non-union employers may lawfully refuse an employee's request to have a co-worker present during an investigatory interview that the employee reasonably believes could lead to discipline. The Board's ruling is a huge victory for non-union employers.
NLRB Reverses Course On Outside Temps, Again
David B. Kern of Quarles & Brady LLP
In the past four years, the National Labor Relations Board ("NLRB"), the federal agency charged with interpreting and enforcing federal laws regarding collective bargaining, has dealt several times with the issue of the status of outside temporary employees, and whether they can be grouped with a user employer's regular workforce for purposes of collective bargaining.