NLRB's Expedited Election Rules Favor Labor, Not Employers

In our new Act Now Advisory, “NLRB Adopts Expedited Election Rules, Effective April 15, 2015,” we report on the National Labor Relations Board’s new rules for representation elections. These rules will substantially shorten the time between the point when a union files a petition for a vote and the timing of the vote, severely limit the right of employers to litigate important issues before an election is held, and are expected to result in more union wins in representation votes. We include steps that employers may want to consider taking in advance of April 2015, in order to adapt to the new reality of ambush elections.

Following is an excerpt:

After a series of false starts, on December 12, 2014, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or “Board”) adopted a 733-page final rule (“Final Rule”) that will significantly change the Board’s longstanding union election procedures and eliminate many of the steps that employers have relied on to protect their rights and the rights of employees who may not want a union. Cumulatively, the amendments in the Final Rule, which will take effect on April 15, 2015, will tilt the scales of a union election in labor’s favor by expediting the election process. Among the most important changes contained in the Final Rule are the following ...

Read the full advisory here.