In an act of administrative ping-pong, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has reversed a prior reversal concerning the way they evaluate employer handbooks, according to a recent decision in the Stericycle, Inc. case.[1]
On August 2, 2023, the NLRB introduced a new legal standard to determine whether an employer’s workplace policy is “facially unlawful” under Section 8(a)(1) of the National Labor Relations Act. The key to this decision is the introduction of a new framework. Specifically, it stipulates that the NLRB General Counsel must demonstrate that a challenged rule would “reasonably tend” to deter employees from exercising their Section 7 rights.
For the uninitiated, Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act pertains to the right of employees to self-organize, form, join, or assist labor organizations, and also to the right to refrain from any or all such activities.
This most recent reversal highlights the complex and ever-shifting landscape of labor laws in the United States. Legal professionals must be vigilant in staying abreast of these changes lest they potentially impact their corporate clients or their own organizations.