Posts tagged NLRB
One TRiiBE, divided?
March 23, 2026 // After the TRiiBE management terminated two employees in January and early March, their last two remaining union-eligible employees—Tonia Hill, who covers the systemic racism beat, and culture correspondent Jerome “Rome J.” Johnson, who covers arts and entertainment, make up the TRiiBE’s award-winning editorial desk—will vote on March 25 on whether to join the Chicago News Guild. The union represents journalists and staff across legacy, alternative, and now nonprofit and independent newsrooms, including multiple Chicago-area news outlets such as the Chicago Sun-Times, the Chicago Tribune, and the Reader.
Canton SA Recycling Employees Scrap Steelworkers Union
March 23, 2026 // A group of over 40 employees of SA Recycling in Canton have successfully voted Steelworkers union officials out of power at their facility by a wide margin. SA Recycling worker Leslie Frase spearheaded the effort by filing a petition in February in which her coworkers demanded that the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) hold a union decertification election at their workplace.
NIH Withdraws Recognition from Union Representing Grad Students and Postdocs
March 19, 2026 // The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has withdrawn recognition from the union representing its postdoctoral and graduate student fellows. In the email announcing the decision, the NIH stated it withdrew recognition because the fellows are not “employees.” Unionization at federal agencies like the NIH is regulated by the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA), rather than the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) which oversees labor relations in the private sector.
Over 100 Windstream North Carolina Employees Vote to Free Themselves of Unwanted CWA Union
March 18, 2026 // Employees of telecommunications provider Windstream North Carolina LLC have successfully voted Communications Workers of America (CWA) union officials out of power at their workplaces across North Carolina. Windstream worker Grant Diorio kicked off his coworkers’ effort to oust the union by filing a petition with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) in January, impacting his work unit of roughly 120 Windstream employees. Diorio filed the petition with free legal aid from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys.
Teamsters nurses authorize strike against Michigan-based Corewell Health East
March 18, 2026 // Corewell Health East nurses, who are represented by the Teamsters union, voted on Tuesday to authorize a strike against the health system over their contract. According to the union, the vote from 10,000 nurses at nine hospitals and campuses received 90% approval for authorization. The union says that the nurses, who have been discussing their contract since June 2025, demand a safe nurse-to-patient ratio, fair wages, affordable health insurance and better workplace safety.
Union Effort at New York Transit Museum Heads to a Vote
March 17, 2026 // Museum workers first announced plans to unionize in early February, a decision they say was driven by concerns over job insecurity, unfair compensation, a lack of transparency around managerial decision-making, and isolation between workers in separate departments. The museum management’s decision to deny voluntary recognition marked a shift in its response toward unions at the institution: Last year, when three dozen sales associates working in the Transit Museum gift shop unionized through the Transport Workers Union 100, museum management opted to recognize the union voluntarily, allowing those workers to move forward without an NLRB election.
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.
Labor Board to Prosecute UFCW Local 7 for Illegally Imposing Fines on King Soopers Workers Who Refused to Strike
March 14, 2026 // UFCW Local 7 has long history of illegal fines and threats against nonmembers during union strikes against both King Soopers and Safeway
Two Groups of Sofitel DC Lafayette Square Hotel Employees Officially Win Efforts to Free Themselves of Unwanted Unions
March 12, 2026 // Two separate groups of employees of Sofitel Washington DC Lafayette Square have prevailed in their battle to free themselves from the “representation” of Unite Here Local 25 and International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 99 union officials. Their victories were cemented after the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) officially certified the results of their votes to remove the unions. Sofitel Lafayette employee Mwandu Chibwe spearheaded the Unite Here “decertification” effort for the more than 60 food service workers, front of house workers, room attendants, and other hospitality workers. The engineers’ and painters’ decertification of IUOE Local 99 was led by Yuri Lishchenko. Both workers received free legal aid from the National Right to Work Foundation.