Tag: NLRA

Columbia University decision latest NLRB victory for unions

The National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) ruling that graduate student assistants at private colleges and universities are entitled to unionize is the latest Board action seen as a boon to union interests. In a 3-1 decision issued on August 23, the Board ruled that graduate assistants at Columbia University are employees as well as students […]

Ask the Expert: Can I Stop Employees from Talking about Compensation?

Can I stop employees from talking about compensation with each other-e.g., discussing how much they are paid? Prohibiting employee discussions about compensation is likely to violate the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), a federal law that protects both unionized and nonunionized employees.  Information about the law is available on HR.BLR under the topics Unions and […]

Social Media Training—The Challenges and the Consequences

By Francine Esposito, Esq. Managing employees’ social media use can be very tricky, but the modern employer cannot afford to ignore the challenge. In today’s Advisor, Francine Esposito, Esq., partner at Day Pitney LLP, elaborates on some of the challenges that surround social media management and training, along with the consequences of taking improper actions.

Exercise Aniston-esque restraint when analyzing offensive employee posts

by Ed Carlstedt This week’s employment law lesson comes to us from the movie Horrible Bosses. In the movie, Julia (played by Jennifer Aniston) is a dentist who employs dental assistant Dale (played by Charlie Day). After Julia uses her boss status to torture and torment Dale for most of the movie, Dale finally records […]

What is a Collective Bargaining Agreement?

As the name implies, collective bargaining involves negotiating (bargaining) on behalf of a group (collectively). In other words, it’s negotiating for changes for a group—in this case—employees of an organization or industry. The term “collective bargaining” usually refers to the negotiations that ensue between a union (representing the employees) and the representatives of the employer […]

NLRA Basics

NLRA stands for the National Labor Relations Act, which was enacted in 1935. The NLRA was created to protect the rights of both employees and employers by encouraging them to come to agreements through collective bargaining. It also served to stop harmful labor practices. It applies to most private employers[i], but it does not apply […]

NLRB dismisses petition to unionize Northwestern football players

Just how the dismissal of the petition to unionize some Northwestern University football players will affect other representation issues before the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is uncertain, but one issue the Board didn’t touch is whether scholarship football players should be considered employees. The NLRB announced on August 17 that it had unanimously decided […]