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26 Apr 2017 Trump Appoints Miscimarra as Chairman of NLRB

National Labor Relations Board | Scott Witlin

  President Trump has named Philip A. Miscimarra Chairman of the National Labor Relations Board. Chairman Miscimarra had been acting chairman since Jan. 23, 2017.  The position, while largely administrative, may bode well for Miscimarra’s renomination to a new term. Chairman Miscimarra’s term expires on Dec. 16, 2017.  Two seats on the five-member board remain vacant.   Scott WitlinScott J. Witlin is a partner in the Los Angeles office of Barnes & Thornburg and a member of…

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27 Jun 2016 Texas Court Issues Nationwide Injunction Against DOL’s Persuader Rule

Federal Laws and Legislation | Scott Witlin

  A Texas Federal Court today issued a nationwide injunction preventing implementation of the Department of Labor’s (DOL) new persuader regulations. More details will be posted, but absent some action by the Fifth Circuit, the court’s ruling prevents the DOL from enforcing its regulation that were due to take effect on July 1.   Click here to read a Barnes & Thornburg legal alert on this topic. Scott WitlinScott J. Witlin is a partner in…

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21 Jun 2016 Supreme Court to Decide if Presidential Appointees Can Fake It Until They Make It

National Labor Relations Board | Scott Witlin

Barely two years after the U.S. Supreme Court decided a similar issue in Noel Canning, the court has again decided to weigh into the propriety of one of President Obama’s appointees to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). NLRB v. SW General. The case involves President Obama’s appointment of Lafe Solomon as “acting general counsel” of the board at the same time the president nominated him for the general counsel (GC) position, prior to his…

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27 May 2016 NLRB Defends Attempt to Encroach on Tribal Sovereignty

National Labor Relations Board | Scott Witlin

On May 23, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) argued to the U.S. Supreme Court that it has authority over labor practices at two Michigan tribal casinos. This argument stems from petitions filed earlier this year by both casino tribes — the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians and the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe. The casinos urged the court to reverse a Sixth Circuit ruling, which upheld NLRB authority over the tribes’ employment practices.  …

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13 Nov 2015 What Is It Really Like To Deal With The NLRB’s New Quickie Election Rules (Part 1)

National Labor Relations Board | Scott Witlin

By now most people have heard about the fact that the Obama NLRB has changed the union election landscape with new “quickie election” rules that are designed to help unions win more elections.   But many readers may be wondering what the practical impact of these rules really are. Having spent a part of the summer dealing with two union election petitions, I wanted to share some of the biggest issues these new rules raise for…

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28 Apr 2015 Analysis of NLRB Elections Prior to the New Ambush Election Rules

National Labor Relations Board | Scott Witlin

The NLRB’s new election rules bring major changes to how union elections are run.  The NLRB’s rationale for making these changes largely is based upon the contention that employees’ free will has been frustrated by long delays at the NLRB that need to be corrected.     Barnes & Thornburg partner Scott Witlin examined the statistics behind those claims in a recent piece, How High Is Too Low: NLRB’s Revised Ambush Election Rule, published in the…

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11 Dec 2014 NLRB HACKS EMAIL SYSTEMS OF EVERY BUSINESS IN THE U.S.

National Labor Relations Board, Union Organizing | Scott Witlin

Earlier today, the NLRB reversed existing precedent and granted all employees the right to use their employer’s email systems for union organizing and other forms of protected concerted activity. In Purple Communications, Inc., the employer’s policy limited employee use of its email and other electronic systems to “business purposes only” and “specifically prohibit[ing]” certain uses by employees. While the employer had a policy that all parties acknowledged complied with existing law, the Board  reversed course, declaring…

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30 Jun 2014 Breaking News: Supreme Court limits unionization for “partial public employees.”

Unions and Union Membership | Scott Witlin

    Supreme Court limits unionization for “partial public employees.”  More complete report to follow.       Scott WitlinScott J. Witlin is a partner in the Los Angeles office of Barnes & Thornburg and a member of the firm’s Labor and Employment Law Department and the Entertainment and Music Practice Group. Mr. Witlin handles traditional labor and employment matters, including arbitrations, collective bargaining negotiations, compliance with various guild and union agreements, and union organizing…

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26 Jun 2014 NLRB CHAIR RESPONDS TO NOEL CANNING DECISION

National Labor Relations Board | Scott Witlin

  In the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision in Noel Canning earlier today, NLRB Chair Mark Gaston Pearce issued the following statement:   “The Supreme Court has today decided the Noel Canning case. We are analyzing the impact that the Court’s decision has on Board cases in which the January 2012 recess appointees participated. Today, the National Labor Relations Board has a full contingent of five Senate-confirmed members who are prepared to fulfill our…

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26 Jun 2014 Noel Canning Affirmed; Unanimous Supreme Court Invalidates President Obama’s NLRB Recess Appointments

National Labor Relations Board | Scott Witlin

  A unanimous Supreme Court today struck down President Obama’s 2013 recess appointments that gave rise to a dispute of Constitutional proportions.  The unanimous Court ruled that the President does not have the authority to make appointments when the Senate is in a brief recess of a few days or even as many as 10 days such as the pro forma sessions the Senate has taken to holding in order to thwart Presidential recess appointments….

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