Posts tagged NLRA
Spring Hill Wells Fargo Staff Set To Vote On Ousting Union Following ‘Broken Promises’
March 24, 2026 // The federal agency has scheduled a “decertification” election for Monday, March 30, which will determine whether the union loses its authority to represent the branch’s employees. The push for the vote was led by employee Virginia Fenton, who received legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation to navigate the filing process. The move comes after Fenton successfully gathered enough signatures from her colleagues to meet the federal threshold required to trigger a secret-ballot 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.
Sixth Circuit Dumps NLRB’s Cemex Ruling to Police Elections
March 9, 2026 // Beyond negating Cemex in the Sixth Circuit, the court’s decision strikes a blow at the NLRB’s fundamental authority to set national labor policy through individual case rulings. While the board is expected to overturn Cemex after its Republican majority gets a crucial third member, the current members recently emphasized their preference for setting policy through case adjudication rather than rarely used rulemaking power. Under Cemex, the NLRB can impose a bargaining order when an employer that was presented with a valid demand for union recognition commits unfair labor practices in the runup to a vote.
21st Century Worker Act Aims to End Worker Classification Confusion
March 6, 2026 // Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) introduced the 21st Century Worker Act, a much needed practical step to clear up persistent confusion surrounding worker classification under federal law. The bill would replace the current patchwork of conflicting standards under the Fair Labor Standards Act, National Labor Relations Act, and Internal Revenue Code with a single, clear bright line test for determining independent contractor status across federal labor and tax statutes. It also directs the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to assess the impact of these new standards and allows workers and businesses freedom to mutually elect worker status in cases where conventional classifications do not apply clearly.
Stacked Deck: How the NLRA Favors Organized Labor and Fails Workers
March 4, 2026 // Today we find a law of unintended consequences. The interests of the workers are often buried under legal precedents and arcane labor rules that make it hard, if not impossible, to make informed decisions regarding unionization. Moreover, the NLRA’s legal landscape is unpredictable and so complex that only the largest employers have a chance of successfully navigating it.
The NLRB will reverse the outrages of the Biden years, but workers need Congress to protect those gains.
March 3, 2026 // Workers have labored under these unjust policies for nearly a century. They deserve better. In the short run, the NLRB can help American workers by reversing the Biden rulings that strengthen unions and restrain businesses at workers’ expense. The board also could end the Biden backdoor card-check scheme, prevent unions from using harassing language, and free employers to talk to workers about unionization. But a future NLRB with members appointed by another president could reverse these policies. Workers ultimately need Congress to pass better labor laws that will last.
Oregon Court Strikes Down Cannabis LPA Mandate – What It Could Mean for California Businesses
February 26, 2026 // California’s mandate is currently being challenged in federal court in Ctrl Alt Destroy, Inc. v. Elliott et al, Case No. 3:24-cv-00753, 2025 WL 790963 (S.D.CA 2025). The case is now pending further review. If the courts ultimately find that California’s requirement conflicts with federal labor law, as the Oregon court did, the mandate could be struck down. Until then, however, it technically remains enforceable.
Stacked Deck: How the NLRA Favors Organized Labor and Fails Workers
February 26, 2026 // Click here to download the report. Stacked Deck: How the NLRA Favors Organized Labor and Fails Workers by Karen Harned, I4AW Visiting Fellow In 2025, America commemorated the 90th anniversary of the National Labor Relations Act which was enacted with the promise of industrial peace that would…
Commentary: Freelancers want to be free
February 26, 2026 // The latest evidence for this comes courtesy of a Politico poll on the subject. The survey found that 88 percent of app-based workers wanted to remain as independent contractors – that is, freelancers – rather than be treated as traditional employees. The workers themselves aren’t buying the argument that they’re being exploited. The general public feels largely the same, if not quite so strongly. The same poll found that 76 percent thought that app-based workers should continue to be treated as independent contractors “if their employers are required to provide them with access to portable benefits.”