Labor Relations / Unions

Nonunion workforce? How union rules could still trip you up

02/01/2024

The federal labor law can be a trap for the unwary—even for nonunion employers. Even if your employees don’t belong to a union, the National Labor Relations Act applies to you. Example: A nonunionized employer now has to pay $900,000 to two fired employees to settle charges that it violated the NLRA. To avoid similar trouble, you must understand this law!

This is how you respond to a group of employees organizing and forming a labor union

01/17/2024

How did Costco respond to a recent employee vote to unionize? Did it fire the organizers? Cut their hours? Trash-talk the union and its supporters? How about none of the above?

NLRB takes on SpaceX in retaliation case

01/12/2024

The National Labor Relations Board continues to exercise its power to regulate workplace conduct while enforcing the National Labor Relations Act. The NLRB just told SpaceX that it acted illegally when it fired eight employees for raising sexual harassment concerns. The case shows that increasingly, employees feel emboldened to speak out against what they perceive as management and CEO behavior that violates evolving workplace expectations of how business is supposed to run.

NLRB joint-employer rule effective date extended until Feb. 26

11/27/2023

The board extended the rule’s effective date to provide time to resolve legal challenges alleging that the rulemaking process violated the Congressional Review Act.

Learn the lessons from ‘Pharmageddon’ walkout

11/20/2023

On Oct. 30, thousands of pharmacy workers at drugstore chains including CVS, Rite Aid and Walgreens walked off their jobs. They stayed away from work for three days. They dubbed the walkout “Pharmageddon”—and promised more work stoppages if changes don’t occur. This highlighted the danger of ignoring employee complaints and the adverse publicity worker walkouts can generate.

United Auto Workers win may embolden more union activism

11/03/2023

After weeks of targeted strikes and other work stoppages by the United Auto Workers against the Big 3 automakers, the union has declared victory. The three simultaneous contract negotiations marked one huge win for the UAW—and the continuation of an overall winning streak for organized labor. Other unions and other workers have surely noticed.

NLRB ruling raises the alarm! Even tiny employers should prepare for union drive

10/30/2023

Small employers sometimes act like they don’t have to worry about unionization, the National Labor Relations Act and the National Labor Relations Board. That’s a huge mistake! All organizations with any employees at all must comply with the NLRA and are subject to NLRB enforcement if they violate the law.

Worker-friendly NLRB final rule makes it easier to establish joint-employer status

10/27/2023

The rule says that, under the National Labor Relations Act, two or more entities may be considered joint employers if each has an employment relationship with a group of employees, and if they play a role in controlling one or more essential terms and conditions of employment.

Prepare now for possible strikes and walkouts

10/16/2023

Across industries and across the nation, workers are voicing their displeasure with poor working conditions and low pay at a time when prices are rising and corporate profits remain high. The issues prompting strikes vary: demands for higher pay, concerns over two-tiered pay systems and complaints about being forced to return to in-person work and inadequate staffing.

Stats show unions gaining support, clout

10/02/2023

As the United Auto Workers strike against the Big 3 automotive manufacturers entered its third week—and just a day after the Writers Guild of America won major concessions to end its strike against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers—it’s clear that organized labor is on a roll.