Labor

  • August 23, 2024

    Ex-Union Officials Embezzled Millions For Years, DOJ Says

    Two ex-presidents of the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers and former high-ranking union officials played a role in a $20 million embezzlement scheme for more than a decade, the U.S. Department of Justice alleged in Kansas federal court, saying union funds were spent on vacation payouts, rent and international trips.

  • August 23, 2024

    Transport Co.'s Union Pushback Flouted Law, Judge Says

    A company that transports migrant children and families from facilities at the U.S.-Mexico border violated federal labor law through its pushback on a union drive, which included interrogating a worker about his union sympathies and later suspending him, a National Labor Relations Board judge ruled Friday.

  • August 23, 2024

    Attys' Fee Request 'Exorbitant' In Pay Bias Spat, NYC Says

    New York City urged a federal court Friday to reject attorneys' $8 million fee request for representing white fire protection inspectors who claimed they were subjected to the same racist pay disparities their nonwhite colleagues alleged they faced, saying it would divert too much money away from the workers.

  • August 23, 2024

    Longshoremen's Union Defeats Fair Representation Claims

    An International Longshoremen's Association local has defeated three members' accusations that it breached its duty of fair representation by funneling work opportunities to union leaders' family and friends, with a Georgia federal judge ruling the allegations were based on speculation.

  • August 23, 2024

    Chapter 11 Check-In: Yellow Corp.'s $1.5B Bankruptcy

    It's been more than a year since national trucking giant Yellow Corp. landed in Delaware's bankruptcy court following contentious union negotiations. Despite pulling in over $2 billion from asset sales and paying off $1.5 billion in debt, Yellow's road out of Chapter 11 has been stalled by high-stakes litigation and claims disputes.

  • August 23, 2024

    Workers Ask 6th Circ. To Remand UAW Bribery Scheme Row

    A group of engineers urged the Sixth Circuit to make a lower court send their fraud and civil conspiracy claims against the United Auto Workers and Fiat Chrysler back to Michigan state court, arguing they fall under state law and do not require interpretation of a labor contract.

  • August 23, 2024

    Off The Bench: Sunday Ticket Twist, Dartmouth-NLRB Clash

    The NFL comes out of the Sunday Ticket trial with a clean slate, Dartmouth is hit with an unfair labor practice charge by its basketball players, and U.S. Tennis doesn't get a do-over on its handling of a sexual assault case. Law360 is here to catch you up on the sports and betting stories that had our readers talking.

  • August 23, 2024

    1st Circ. Says Longshoremen Local Still On Hook For $1.7M

    The International Longshoreman's Association pension fund is entitled to collect nearly $1.7 million in unpaid contributions and attorney fees from a union local in San Juan, Puerto Rico, following a merger with another local that had been in arrears, the First Circuit has ruled.

  • August 23, 2024

    Union 401(k) Plan Trustees Strike $5M Deal To End ERISA Suit

    Two elevator workers asked a Pennsylvania federal court to sign off on a $5 million settlement that would wrap up a proposed class action alleging their union's retirement plan was loaded with excessive administrative fees and shoddy investment options.

  • August 23, 2024

    Calif. Forecast: Court To Weigh $4M Insurance Co. Wage Deal

    In the coming week, attorneys should watch for the potential final sign-off on a $4 million deal to resolve a wage and hour class action against Arthur J. Gallagher Service Co. LLC. Here's a look at that case and other labor and employment matters on deck in California.

  • August 22, 2024

    Prosecutors Urge NLRB To Widen Supervisor Firing Exception

    National Labor Relations Board prosecutors on Thursday urged the board to broaden an exception to the rule that federal labor law does not shield managers from firing, arguing such punishments are illegal when they're meant to stop nonmanagers from organizing.

  • August 22, 2024

    Labor Board's LA Office Says Amazon Jointly Employs Drivers

    Amazon exercised enough control over its contracted Southern California delivery drivers' work conditions to be considered their joint employer, the National Labor Relations Board's Los Angeles office said Thursday, announcing plans to pursue a case that could clear the way for the retail giant's drivers to unionize.

  • August 22, 2024

    Philly Contractor Gets Probation For Taking Union Money

    A Philadelphia contractor who accepted union money embezzled by John Dougherty, former business manager of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 98, to renovate the labor leader's personal properties was sentenced to three years of probation Thursday.

  • August 22, 2024

    Ala. Bar Did Not Make BLM Supporters Quit, NLRB Says

    A bar in Birmingham, Alabama, did not unlawfully force out employees who went to Black Lives Matter protests in 2020, the National Relations Board ruled, supporting an agency judge's conclusions that the workers weren't taking part in protected concerted activities.

  • August 22, 2024

    Kroger-Albertsons Wrong On Labor Law In FTC Row: NLRB

    The National Labor Relations Board used an amicus brief Wednesday to call out Kroger and Albertsons for their "mistaken" citation to labor law as a defense against Federal Trade Commission claims that the grocery giants' $25 billion megamerger threatens union bargaining leverage.

  • August 22, 2024

    Nonprofit Beats Ill. Teachers Union's Election Meddling Suit

    An Illinois federal judge tossed litigation claiming an education policy nonprofit meddled in a Chicago Teachers Union election, saying the sections of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act the union sued under do not authorize lawsuits by private parties.

  • August 22, 2024

    Aluminum Co. Legally Fired Worker, NLRB Judge Says

    An aluminum manufacturer in Indiana lawfully fired a former union steward for allegedly threatening violence, a National Labor Relations Board judge ruled, saying the worker's union activities and filing of unfair labor practice charges weren't linked to his discharge.

  • August 21, 2024

    Tech Cos. Duck Proposed Calif. Bill Via News Funding Deal

    Major tech companies, including Google, agreed Wednesday to pay roughly $250 million into a fund that proponents say would support newsrooms across California in a deal that avoids a proposed regulation that would've forced Big Tech to pay the state's media organizations for distributing news content.

  • August 21, 2024

    Union Health Plan Trustees Can't Avoid Fee Claim, Judge Says

    Trustees of a UNITE HERE health plan can't topple a group of Southern California workers' claims that they are facing higher administrative expenses compared to another group of workers in Las Vegas, an Illinois federal court ruled Wednesday.

  • August 21, 2024

    7th Circ. Enforces Reinstatement Of Car Dealership Strikers

    The Seventh Circuit enforced a National Labor Relations Board order Wednesday compelling an Illinois Cadillac dealership to rehire and give back pay to the employees it shut out when they went on strike, rejecting the dealership's argument that the enforcement petition was moot because it had already complied.

  • August 21, 2024

    Jewish MIT Students, Union End Bias And Unfair Labor Cases

    Jewish graduate students from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology said Wednesday they will be able to cut ties with their union, ending religious discrimination charges with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and unfair labor practice charges at the National Labor Relations Board.

  • August 21, 2024

    Search Engine Operator Joins NLRB Constitutionality Chorus

    A public benefit corporation that runs a search engine for connecting people with social services has joined the chorus of companies seeking to stop unfair labor practice cases from proceeding against them by challenging the National Labor Relations Board's constitutionality, according to a new lawsuit in Texas federal court.

  • August 21, 2024

    Starbucks' Evidence Spat Challenge Is Untimely, NLRB Says

    Starbucks delayed its challenge of an administrative law judge's decision allowing the National Labor Relations Board general counsel to present evidence relevant to an injunction proceeding, a split NLRB panel determined in a case involving claims that the coffee chain illegally suspended workers in South Carolina.

  • August 20, 2024

    Calif. Teamsters Ex-Official Can Pursue Retaliation Claims

    A California federal judge said she can't oversee claims that Teamsters Local 150's process for nominating and electing officials is "rigged to crush dissent," but she can oversee a former official's claim that he was excluded from a slate of candidates as retaliation for critiquing a colleague, the judge ruled Tuesday.

  • August 20, 2024

    NLRB Official OKs UAW Vote At Reentry Services Nonprofit

    Attorneys and other staff at a nonprofit providing legal services to people leaving prison can vote on whether they want a United Auto Workers affiliate to represent them, a National Labor Relations Board regional director concluded, nixing the organization's claims that some employees are supervisors who can't unionize.

Expert Analysis

  • Water Cooler Talk: Immigration Insights From 'The Proposal'

    Author Photo

    Tracey Diamond and Evan Gibbs at Troutman Pepper chat with their colleague Robert Lee about how immigration challenges highlighted in the romantic comedy "The Proposal" — beyond a few farcical plot contrivances — relate to real-world visa processes and employer compliance.

  • Insuring Lender's Baseball Bet Leads To Major League Dispute

    Author Photo

    In RockFence v. Lloyd's, a California federal court seeks to define who qualifies as a professional baseball player for purposes of an insurance coverage payout, providing an illuminating case study of potential legal issues arising from baseball service loans, say Marshall Gilinsky and Seán McCabe at Anderson Kill.

  • Preparing For The NLRB's New Union Recognition Final Rule

    Author Photo

    The National Labor Relations Board's impending new final rule on union recognition puts the employer at a particular disadvantage in a decertification election, and best practices include conducting workplace assessments to identify and proactively address employee issues, say Louis Cannon and Gerald Bradner at Baker Donelson.

  • The Big Issues A BigLaw Associates' Union Could Address

    Author Photo

    A BigLaw associates’ union could address a number of issues that have the potential to meaningfully improve working conditions, diversity and attorney well-being — from restructured billable hour requirements to origination credit allocation, return-to-office mandates and more, says Tara Rhoades at The Sanity Plea.

  • It's Time For A BigLaw Associates' Union

    Author Photo

    As BigLaw faces a steady stream of criticism about its employment policies and practices, an associates union could effect real change — and it could start with law students organizing around opposition to recent recruiting trends, says Tara Rhoades at The Sanity Plea.

  • Key Steps To Employer Petitions For Union Elections

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
    Author Photo

    Since the National Labor Relations Board shifted the burden of requesting formal union elections onto employers in its Cemex decision last year — and raised the stakes for employer missteps during the process — companies should be prepared to correctly file representation management election petitions and respond to union demands for recognition, says Adam Keating at Duane Morris.

  • Focus On Political Stances May Weaken Labor Unions

    Author Photo

    Recent lawsujits and a bill pending in the U.S. House of Representatives call attention to the practice of labor unions taking political stances with which their members disagree — an issue that may weaken unions, and that employers should stay abreast of, given its implications for labor organizing campaigns, workplace morale and collective bargaining, says Daniel Johns at Cozen O'Connor.

  • NLRB Ruling Highlights Rare Union Deauthorization Process

    Author Photo

    A recent National Labor Relations Board decision about a guard company's union authorization revocation presents a ripe opportunity for employees to review the particulars of this uncommon process, and employer compliance is critical as well, say Megann McManus and Trecia Moore at Husch Blackwell.

  • Latest 'Nuclear Verdict' Underscores Jury-Trial Employer Risk

    Author Photo

    A Los Angeles Superior Court jury's recent $900 million verdict in a high-profile sexual assault and harassment case illustrates the increase in so-called nuclear verdicts in employment cases, and the need for employers to explore alternative methods of resolving disputes, say Anthony Oncidi and Morgan Peterson at Proskauer.

  • After Chevron: What Loper Bright Portends For The NLRB

    Author Photo

    While the U.S. Supreme Court has a long history of deferring to the National Labor Relations Board's readings of federal labor law, the court's Loper Bright v. Raimondo decision forces courts to take a harder look at the judgment of an agency — and the NLRB will not be immune from such greater scrutiny, says Irving Geslewitz at Much Shelist.

  • What's Next After NLRB Ruling On Overbroad Noncompetes

    Author Photo

    If the National Labor Relations Board's recent ruling on noncompete provisions and its extension of Section 7 rights to limit noncompetes is adopted, this interpretation of the National Labor Relations Act will have to survive scrutiny by the courts without the deference previously afforded under the U.S. Supreme Court's recent overturning of Chevron, say attorneys at Littler.

  • Justices' Starbucks Ruling May Limit NLRB Injunction Wins

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision in Starbucks v. McKinney, adopting a more stringent test for National Labor Relations Board Section 10(j) injunctions, may lessen the frequency with which employers must defend against injunctions alongside parallel unfair labor practice charges, say David Pryzbylski and Colleen Schade at Barnes & Thornburg.

  • A Way Forward For The US Steel-Nippon Deal And Union Jobs

    Author Photo

    Parties involved in Nippon Steel's acquisition of U.S. Steel should trust the Pennsylvania federal court overseeing a key environmental settlement to supervise a way of including future union jobs and cleaner air for the city of Pittsburgh as part of a transparent business marriage, says retired judge Susan Braden.