Management Memo

For 2 days, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) heard from speakers on its proposed rules to accelerate the processing of union representation petitions and quicken the timing of elections. The speakers ranged from several labor unions, including the UFCW, SEIU, CWA and AFL-CIO as well as a number of trade associations, including National Federation of Independent Businesses, Coalition for a Democratic Workplace, National Association of Manufacturers, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and EBG client, National Grocers Association (NGA). The positions of the parties were ...

Our colleague Kara Maciel will speak on behalf of EBG client, National Grocers Association (“NGA”), at the National Labor Relations Board’s public meeting, scheduled for April 10-11, 2014 regarding the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”) on the “ambush election” representation procedures.

The panels will address the following topics:

• Panel B.2: Requirement for written statement of position
  Address issues related to the proposed requirement for a written statement of position.
• Panel E.1 & E.3: Election date
  Please describe the standard to be applied for ...

By Steven M. Swirsky and Adam C. Abrahms

The Regional Director for the NLRB’s Chicago Region has found that football players at Northwestern University who receive scholarships are “employees” for purposes of the National Labor Relations Act.  Some of the football players blindsided the University, NCAA and college athletics by filing a petition to be represented by the College Athlete Players Association (CAPA), a putative union funded and supported by the United Steelworkers union. As only "employees" are covered by the National Labor Relations Act, finding them to be ...

By Kara M. Maciel and Lindsay A. Smith

On March 12, 2014, the National Labor Relations Board (“the Board”) concluded that a beef processing company committed an unfair labor practice in violation of the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”) when it terminated three workers for striking in protest of their working conditions (“Greater Omaha Packing Co.”).  More significant, however, was the Board’s decision to reverse an Administrative Law Judge’s finding concerning the employer’s questioning of an employee.  Prior to the strike, one of the terminated ...

Our colleague Eric Conn, Chair of Epstein Becker Green's OSHA Practice Group, will present a complimentary webinar on April 8, at 1:00 p.m. EDT: OSHA's Temporary Worker Initiative. Topics include enforcement issues and data related to this work relationship, and recommendations and strategies for managing safety and health issues related to a temporary workforce.

Companies are expected to employ many more temporary workers as the Affordable Care Act is implemented, particularly when the "Employer Mandate" kicks in, which will require employers with 50 or more workers to ...

By Kara M. Maciel

Today, EBG client, National Grocers Association (“NGA”), filed a request to speak at the National Labor Relations Board’s public meeting, scheduled for April 10-11, 2014 regarding the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”) on the “ambush election” representation procedures.

NGA is the national trade association representing retail and wholesale grocers that comprise the independent sector of the food distribution industry.  NGA requested to speak on 4 key issues being contemplated by the NLRB:

1. Timing of the Election.  NGA opposes any ...

As we noted in "First Kill All The Lawyers", last November the DOL announced its intention to move forward this month with the Administration's Proposed Rule change which would eviscerate the Advice Exemption to the Persuader Rule .  Yesterday, the DOL again delayed its timeline for finalizing the Rule.

In November the DOL's announcement asserted that it intended to publish a Final Rule in March.  On March 6, according to Bloomberg BNA, a DOL spokesman asserted that the Proposed Rule would NOT be made final this month.  The DOL did not give a new target date for finalizing the Rule ...

By Maxine Neuhauser

As we have discussed on a number of prior occasions (Fifth Circuit Rejects The NLRB’s D.R. Horton Decision On Arbitration Waivers; Obama’s Labor Agenda Continues to Advance – Griffin Confirmed as NLRB GC; NLRB Administrative Law Judge Finds Medical Center’s Technology Usage Policies Violated Employees Rights Under the National Labor Relations Act. and Labor Law vs. Common Sense – NLRB Continues Targeting Non-Union Employers and Common Sense) the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” ) and its Administrative Law Judges continue to find that ...

Our colleague Mark M. Trapp recently wrote an article entitled "Going Through Withdrawal: A Step-By-Step Guide to Arbitration in Multiemployer Withdrawal Liability Disputes" which appears in the current issue of the ABA Journal of Labor & Employment Law (members only).   

Following is an excerpt:

Many employers with a unionized workforce contribute to multiemployer pension funds established by collective bargaining agreements. In recent years, due to a variety of factors, most multiemployer funds have faced significant underfunding. As employers have exited these funds ...

By Steven M. Swirsky, Adam C. Abrahms, Kara M. Maciel, and Casey M. Cosentino

As previously predicted by the Management Memo on August 1, 2013 and October 30, 2013, the National Labor Relations Board (the “Board”) issued a second Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”) to amend its existing rules and regulations governing union elections procedures. If they look familiar when you see them, there is a good reason for that: you have seen them before.

As readers of the Management Memo are well aware, the NPRM is the latest development in the long saga of organized labor’s attempts ...