On December 11, 2014, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) stoked the fire that has been building around issues related to employees’ use of company e-mail for non-work-related issues. It did so when it held that the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) supports an employee’s right to use an employer’s e-mail system for non-business purposes,
NLRA
Credible threats of insubordinate activity could override NLRA protections for employees’ Facebook postings.
A few months ago, the National Labor Relations Board (the Board) determined that an employee’s profanity-laced tirade did not lose the protection of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), because the tirade followed the employer’s statement that if the employee didn’t like his job, he could quit.
Recently, however, the Board found that a Facebook…
Inconsistent discipline leads to reinstatement of employee fired for “throat slashing” motion.
Can an employer fire an employee who allegedly makes a throat slashing motion to a co-worker who interprets the motion as a threat? According to a recent NLRB decision, maybe not. Nichols Aluminum, LLC and Teamsters Local Union No. 371, Case No. 25-CA-08260, august 18, 2014.
Bruce Bandy has been employed since at least…
Asking coworkers for assistance in supporting legal claim may constitute concerted activity under the NLRA.
Most employers are aware that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act protects individuals from harassment and discrimination, and further protects them from filing claims alleging such harassment or discrimination. However, many employers are not aware that Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) also protects employees who attempt to garner support for …
NLRB continues to criticize employer restrictions on employees’ use of confidential information.
In another of the increasingly frequent decisions by the National Labor Relations Board critical of employers’ policies and handbook provisions, a Board panel recently determined that the confidentiality rule included in an employer’s “Code of Business Conduct” was overly broad and restricted employees’ right to engage in concerted activities, a restriction in violation of Section …
Employee’s profanity-laced outburst may not preclude protection under the National Labor Relations Act.
Here are the basic facts of a case (Plaza Auto Center, Inc. and Nick Aguirre, Case 28-CA-022256, May 28, 2014) that has raised a question regarding the inherent conflict between “protected activity” under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and insubordinate behavior by employees:
• Nick Aguirre became employed by Plaza Auto Center in Yuma…
Employment Law Carnival – The A to Z List
Law Partners Maria Danaher, Editor of Employment Law Matters, and Mary Wright, Guest Blogger (both of Ogletree Deakins), offer up this month’s Employment Law Carnival.
Here is our A to Z list of legal pickings from around the ‘Net.
is for the ADA
Eric B. Meyer, The Employer Handbook, The Firefighter Afraid of…
OSHA and NLRB referral agreement could extend NLRB’s reach into workplace safety issues.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is an arm of the U.S. Department of Labor, and is the federal agency charged with the enforcement of legislation related to the health and safety of workers.
OSHA’s primary enforcement tool is the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSH Act). Section 11(c) of the OSH…
Does your employee handbook violate the National Labor Relations Act? Based on recent NLRB decisions, it’s likely.
Under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), employees have the right to: “self-organization, to form, join, or assist labor organizations, to bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing, and to engage in other concerted activities for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid or protection. . . .” Section…
Handbook’s prohibition on “negative comments” about team members found to have violated the NLRA.
Like many employers, Hills and Dales General Hospital’s employee policies included provisions prohibiting “negative comments” about fellow team members, and precluded engaging in “negativity or gossip.” The policies further included a requirement to represent the hospital within the community “in a positive and professional manner in every opportunity.”
Recently, a three-member panel of the National…