Posts tagged Cemex
Cemex Survives: Board Declines Chance to Overturn Novel Representation Framework
April 12, 2026 // While many expected that the Board in Trump’s second administration would quickly overturn Cemex, likely via a representation petition – the procedural posture where the issue would first come up – the decision in St. John’s College indicts just the opposite. The Board’s approach here instead appears consistent with the Board’s broader current goal of clearing its substantial backlog, which has led to the Board ruling narrowly in some recent cases. The Board did somewhat expand an employer’s ability to file an RM petition to test a union’s majority status more than two weeks after it received a demand for recognition, but left open the key question of whether a “late” filed RM petition would serve as a defense to a later unfair labor practice charge. We will need to wait for a later unfair labor practice case in order to gain clarity on this important question.
Potential Falsehoods by the Teamsters Create Opening for Reliable Union Elections
March 30, 2026 // Because in later testimony, BTS employees testified that the lead organizer who claims he was on site soliciting cards on April 23 was never there. Nor, workers testified, were any cards at all signed that day. In addition, there were only 40 drivers on hand that morning, not 46. And finally, BTS employed more than 91 drivers and dispatchers, meaning that, even if 46 cards had been signed, that would not constitute a majority. Therefore, if the workers’ testimony is correct, the majority needed to form a union did not exist.
Sixth Circuit Rejects NLRB’s Cemex Bargaining Order Framework
March 15, 2026 // On March 6, 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit issued a significant decision in Brown‑Forman Corporation d/b/a Woodford Reserve Distillery v. National Labor Relations Board, rejecting the Board’s controversial 2023 Cemex Construction framework, which altered the longstanding standard for union recognition and expanded the circumstances under which the Board could issue bargaining orders—even when a union did not win an election.
Editorial Board: In defense of the secret ballot
March 15, 2026 // In the case decided by the 6th Circuit, Brown-Forman challenged the basis for the NLRB’s Cemex ruling and won. The supposedly unfair labor practice committed at its Woodford Reserve bourbon distillery was giving workers a $4-per-hour raise, expanding merit-based salary increases, offering more vacation time and providing free bottles of bourbon. The employees voted 45-14 against unionizing, but the NLRB ordered the company to bargain with that union anyway. The advantage of secret-ballot elections is that workers are free of coercion by unions or employers when deciding whether they wish to unionize. It also ensures that their decisions are anonymous, so they won’t fear retaliation or harassment by aggressive union organizers or the people who pay their salaries. A secret ballot is far more likely to reflect their true views.
Letter to NLRB General Counsel Crystal Carey: Refocusing Federal Labor Policy on Worker Choice and Due Process
March 11, 2026 // The Coalition to Protect American Workers (CPAW) and the Institute for the American Worker (I4AW) today sent a joint letter to NLRB General Counsel Crystal Carey urging swift action to reverse Biden-era labor policies that erode worker choice, restrict employer free speech, and weaponize procedural tools to block workers from voting on their own representation. The letter urges General Counsel Carey to prioritize three reforms: cementing secret-ballot elections as the foundation of representation decisions; restoring Employer Meetings on Unionization so workers hear both sides before they vote; and ending blocking charges that freeze elections while investigations proceed.
US court nixes NLRB ruling allowing for unionizing without elections
March 10, 2026 // A U.S. appeals court has ruled that the National Labor Relations Board overstepped its powers when it issued a major ruling requiring employers that violate labor laws during union organizing drives to bargain with unions even when workers vote against joining them. The Cincinnati-based 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in a 2-1 ruling, opens new tab on Friday called the board's 2023 decision in Cemex Construction Materials Pacific "rulemaking under the guise of an adjudication" that went far beyond the NLRB's authority to issue fact-based rulings and specific remedies in individual cases.
Coalition for a Democratic Workplace Urges US Attorney General to Unilaterally Override Biden-Era NLRB Decisions
May 16, 2025 // Ordinarily, employers try to get the NLRB to change a decision with which they disagree by challenging the decision on appeal. Employers also have the ability to argue to the Board in future cases, particularly after a change in administrations, that it should revisit its own precedent. The NLRB would then consider the issue and arguments and decide whether to change its earlier decision. However, the CDW has asked Bondi to unilaterally invalidate 15 Biden-era Board rulings, including 14 that set new precedents.
Schumer moves to lock in place Democrat-majority labor board
December 11, 2024 // Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer is attempting to ensure that the Democrats retain control of the National Labor Relations Board, the main federal labor law enforcement agency, until at least 2026 by extending the term of its current chairwoman, Lauren McFerran. A Senate floor vote on McFerran’s nomination is pending and, while it is possible that Senate Republicans could block it, it is not clear if enough will show up for the vote to do that. The vote may happen on Wednesday. This matters because the current board has been an aggressive advocate for unionization.
How Will the U.S. Election Outcome Affect Labor Law? A Deep Dive into the NLRB’s Future
November 19, 2024 // The NLRB’s policy agenda is almost certain to shift. The new General Counsel will likely take a different approach to several key labor issues that the current NLRB has made a priority. For example, current General Counsel Abruzzo pursued aggressive enforcement actions against restrictive covenants, like non-compete and nonsolicitation agreements, following her May 2023 memo where she articulated her view that restrictive covenants like non-competes “generally violate federal labor law.” The new General Counsel will almost certainly halt enforcement of this position and several others when the new administration takes control.
Commentary: The NLRB’s “Laboratory Conditions” Are Overdue for Inspection
October 7, 2024 // In several lines of precedent since the passage of the 1947 Taft-Hartley amendments, courts have ignored or glossed over this textual problem and have allowed the NLRB to police campaign misconduct quite closely. Most relevant here is the doctrine first announced in General Shoe Corporation. The Shoe Workers Union objected to its election loss at a plant in Pulaski, Tennessee, and charged the employer with co-extensive unfair labor practices. The employer’s president was shown to have lectured employees personally about their union support. Finding that no unfair labor practice had been proven, the Board nevertheless set aside the Union’s loss,