The newly reconstituted National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), which oversees relationships between organized labor and business, this past Friday (Aug. 21, 2010) upheld the first four of hundreds of decisions rendered by the two-member NLRB that existed in the waning months of the Bush administration–decisions that were later invalidated by the Supreme Court.
Earlier this year, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the two-member decisions were invalid due to the lack of a quorum of board members (when fully assembled, the NLRB has five members–traditionally, three from the ruling party and two from the opposition). The 2008-2009 board was shorthanded due to the inability of the administration and Congress to agree on nominees.
It will obviously take time for the board to review all affected decisions, but the four that were affirmed on Friday were done so without even one opposition opinion being recorded.
With a renewed emphasis by the Obama administration on the rights of organized labor, businesses should review all policies toward their employees and stay in utmost compliance with all directives and mandates. Just this year, Executive Order 13496 placed a new requirement on businesses with federal contracts to notify their workforces of their collective bargaining rights. Personnel Concepts has incorporated this notification mandate into its All-On-One Federal Contracts Poster. If your company does business with the federal government, it would be prudent to display the proper notification. Get your poster today.