The District Court of South Carolina struck down the NLRB requirement that employer’s post the “employee rights” notice poster in US Chamber of Commerce v. NLRB. The Chamber argue that the NLRB could not require employers to post the notice because it is not authorized by the National Labor Relations Act. The NLRB argued that Section 6 of the Act, which allows it to promulgate rules that are necessary to carry out its mission, provided the required authority.
The district judge ruled that Section 6 requires rules promulgated by the NLRB be necessary to carry out other provisions of the Act, and the NLRB failed to prove that the notice-posting rule was necessary. The judge noted in his opinion that with computers and the Internet, information is freely available to employees, further weakening the NLRB’s claim that the poster was necessary.
While this was certainly a step back for the NLRB, this will not be the last we hear of the “employee rights” notice poster. The NLRB will likely appeal the district court’s ruling, and both sides will argue their case before the court of appeals. However, the rules effective date will almost certainly be pushed back yet again, so stay tuned.
UPDATE: The District of Columbia Circuit Court has enjoined the NLRB from enforcing the regulation that would have required employers to post the employee rights notice poster.
This article is authored by attorney Casey L. Sipe and is intended for educational purposes and to give you general information and a general understanding of the law only, not to provide specific legal advice. Any particular questions should be directed to your legal counsel or, if you do not have one, please feel free to contact us.
