Articles and Blogs

Sometimes having a good No-Solicitation and No-Distribution Policy is not good enough when supervisors warn about activities that aren’t covered by otherwise lawful policies.  In this case a hospital that was having problems with its incumbent union had previously established a pretty good policy.  That policy provided: “Solicitation/ Distribution.  Employees are forbidden from soliciting... READ MORE

According to long standing NLRB doctrine, in healthcare facilities, restrictions on wearing non-official buttons and insignia in immediate patient care areas are valid. But if there is selective enforcement of the restrictions singles out union related buttons and insignia then there is a problem unless the hospital can show that the restriction was “necessary... READ MORE

In a memo issued today, NLRB Acting General Counsel Lafe Solomon outlined in detail how regional offices will implement new representation case procedures that take effect on Monday, April 30. The guidance covers the entire representation case process from beginning to end, incorporating to the extent necessary the new rules and the procedures that... READ MORE

Just hours after the Federal Appeals Court for the District of Columbia issued its emergency injunction preventing the enforcement of the NLRB’s Employee Rights Notice Posting Rule, the NLRB issued this statement:  “In view of the DC Circuit’s order, and in light of the strong interest in the uniform implementation and administration of agency rules, regional... READ MORE

On April 17, 2012, the Federal Appeals Court for the District of Columbia issued an emergency injunction preventing the NLRB from enforcing its Employee Rights Notice Posting rule that was set to become effective on April 30, 2012.  The Court’s Order granting the injunction sets an expedited schedule for hearing the appeal.  Nevertheless, even with the expedited schedule,... READ MORE

Friday the 13th was a bad news day for the NLRB but potentially a very good news day for private employers.  A federal district court judge in South Carolina on Friday, April 13, 2012 held that the NLRB’s rule obligating private employers to post a notice explaining employee rights under the NLRA was beyond... READ MORE

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has again postponed the requirement for private employers to post notice of employee rights under the Nation Labor Relations Act (NLRA). See our previous analysis here, here, and here. Employers now have until April 30,2012 to post the required notice.  The board said it “has determined that postponing... READ MORE

Representative John Kline of Minnesota introduced the Workforce Democracy and Fairness Act last week in response to recent NLRB actions affecting employers.  One aspect of this Bill is the reversal of the NLRB’s Specialty Healthcare decision which altered the established standard for determining collective bargaining units in non-acute care health facilities.    READ MORE

The NLRB announced last week that it has postponed the implementation date for its new notice-posting rule (previously discussed here and here) by more than two months in order to allow for “enhanced education and outreach to employers”, particularly those who operate small and medium sized businesses.  The posting requirement for most private employers... READ MORE

In a 3-1 decision released yesterday, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) decided the Specialty Healthcare case favoring the ability of small units of employees to unionize.  Overruling the established Park Manor standard, the NLRB ruled that just the 53 CNAs at a nursing facility could organize as one collective bargaining unit.   READ MORE