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National Labor Relations Board Proposes Rule to Require Notice Posting

December, 22 2010

On December 21, 2010, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) issued a proposed rule to require employers covered by the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) to post notices informing employees of their rights. Some key provisions of the proposed rule are:

• The notice must be posted by all employers covered by the NLRA, regardless of whether any of the employer's workers are represented by a union. Most private-sector employers are covered. Public-sector employers are not covered.
• The notice includes language informing employees of their right to bargain collectively, form unions and how to report unfair labor practices to the NLRB, among other things. The notice's language tracks the language the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) requires federal contractors to use. Federal contractors that have complied with the DOL's posting requirements are deemed to comply with the NLRB's requirements.
• The rule would require employers to also provide the notice electronically if the employer normally communicates with employees electronically. Examples provided in the notice of proposed rule making include posting the notice on the employer's intranet site, or emailing a link to employees.
• Under the proposed rule, employers that violate the posting requirement may be guilty of an unfair labor practice charge, or may be subject to having the 6-month statute of limitations for filing unfair labor practice charges extended, or "tolled," during the period of non-compliance. If an employer knowingly fails to post the notice, the NLRB may consider the failure evidence of unlawful motive in unfair labor practice cases in which unlawful motive must be shown. 

One member of the NLRB, Brian Hayes, dissented from the proposed rule making, arguing that the NLRB does not have authority to require employers to post notices when the employer has not committed an unfair labor practice charge. 

A copy of the notice of proposed rule making is available by clicking here (note: a PDF viewer is required). The text of the proposed regulation begins on page 36 of the document. You may view the NLRB's announcement of the proposed rule on the NLRB's website by clicking here. Anyone wishing to submit comments on the proposed rule to the NLRB may do so until February 22, 2011. 

If you have questions about your organization's obligations under the National Labor Relations Act, please contact your labor and employment counsel, or contact us.


 

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