Labor

  • August 19, 2024

    DTE Energy Looks To Sink Workers' Login Pay Suit

    Energy company DTE Energy told a Michigan federal court that customer service employees who sued it for unpaid off-the-clock work received more than double the minimum wage and that federal labor law preempts their breach of contract claims, arguing their suit can't stand.

  • August 16, 2024

    Harris' Surge Renews Labor Advocates' White House Hopes

    Vice President Kamala Harris' emergence as the Democrats' nominee for president has drawn the race to a dead heat, easing labor advocates' worries of former President Donald Trump retaking the White House and frustrating management's hopes for a quick return to pro-business labor policies.

  • August 16, 2024

    Feds Drop Extortion Case Against Convicted Ex-Labor Leader

    Federal prosecutors want to dismiss their extortion case against former International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 98 business manager John Dougherty, who was convicted of bribery and embezzlement and sentenced to six years in prison, but whose trial on charges related to allegedly threatening a contractor ended with a hung jury.

  • August 16, 2024

    Carpenters Union Healthcare Plan Seeks To Ax Worker's Suit

    A Carpenters-represented worker who lost health insurance once the union's healthcare plan stopped working with his employer lacks standing to sue the plan, the plan and its trustees argued in California federal court, suggesting the worker raise the issue with his employer or the union itself.

  • August 16, 2024

    Judge Bounces Bad Bunny Sports Agency Suit To Arbitration

    The sports agency linked to music megastar Bad Bunny must arbitrate its dispute over certification of its agents with the Major League Baseball Players Association, after a Puerto Rico federal judge ruled the union's arbitration language is valid.

  • August 16, 2024

    6th Circ. Nixes Union Local's Win In Steel Co. Benefit Row

    The Sixth Circuit has reversed a judgment that a reinforced-steel contractor owes about $2 million in unpaid fringe benefit contributions to journeymen who traveled from other states to work on a project in Michigan, finding there was insufficient evidence to support the award.

  • August 16, 2024

    UAW Defends Handling Of Grievance In Race Bias Lawsuit

    The United Auto Workers asked an Ohio federal judge to toss a Black member's claim that the union insufficiently fought his discharge from Howmet Aerospace Inc. because of his race, saying the worker failed to show the union unfairly handled the firing grievance.

  • August 16, 2024

    Calif. Forecast: Liberty Mutual $3M Deal Up For Approval

    In the coming week, attorneys should keep an eye out for potential final approval of a $3.125 million settlement in a wage and hour class action against Liberty Mutual. Here's a look at that case and other labor and employment matters coming up in California.

  • August 16, 2024

    New Union Vote Isn't Justified At BJ's Store, NLRB Judge Says

    Statements from management at a BJ's Wholesale Club Inc. store in Brooklyn during a union drive do not warrant a rerun election, a National Labor Relations Board judge concluded, saying the comments hadn't spread to other workers in the bargaining unit.

  • August 16, 2024

    Breaks In Union Work Axed Mechanic's Pension, Judge Says

    A longtime mechanic forfeited his union pension by taking two multi-year breaks from accepting union-covered work, an Illinois federal judge ruled, siding with a union pension fund in its dispute with the mechanic over his pension eligibility.

  • August 16, 2024

    NY Forecast: 1st Hearing In Hotel Bid To End Union Deals

    A New York City hotel and hospitality workers' union are scheduled to appear before a New York federal judge for the first time as part of the hotel's lawsuit seeking to end ongoing agreements the union struck with a previous owner.

  • August 15, 2024

    NLRB Drops 2 Injunction Bids Over NY Starbucks Stores

    Two New York federal courts approved the dismissal of National Labor Relations Board injunction petitions against Starbucks, following months of discovery disputes between the agency, company and Workers United.

  • August 15, 2024

    6th Circ. Finds Biden Had Power To Fire Former NLRB GC

    President Joe Biden lawfully fired former National Labor Relations Board general counsel Peter Robb more than three years ago, the Sixth Circuit ruled, with the appeals court saying removal protections for the agency's top prosecutor would affect the official's accountability to the president.

  • August 15, 2024

    Printers' Union Successfully Split From Teamsters, Court Says

    A printing workers' union is no longer affiliated with the Teamsters, a Washington, D.C., federal judge confirmed Thursday, finding that a 2005 merger between the two unions dissolved in 2022.

  • August 15, 2024

    Ill. Health Center Challenges NLRB Constitutionality

    An Illinois health center on Wednesday filed the latest constitutional challenge to the National Labor Relations Board, urging an Illinois federal judge to block an NLRB prosecution over its decision to fire employees who allegedly provided fake Social Security numbers when they were hired.

  • August 15, 2024

    NLRB Seeks Injunction Against Pittsburgh Paper Amid Strike

    National Labor Relations Board prosecutors are pursuing an injunction against the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in federal court, saying the newspaper's bad faith bargaining and refusal to maintain workers' healthcare during a nearly two-year-long strike warrants an order compelling the newspaper to bargain with its four unions.

  • August 14, 2024

    Union Fights SkyWest's Request To Toss DOL Reports Suit

    The Association of Flight Attendants-Communications Workers of America on Wednesday challenged an attempt from SkyWest Airlines to nix the union's allegation that the company didn't file reports about payments to an in-house employees' group, saying there is an implied cause of action allowing the union to pursue its claim.

  • August 14, 2024

    Starbucks' Mounting Labor Violations Show Bias, NLRB Says

    Starbucks' growing pile of labor violations betrays the company's hostility toward workers' efforts to organize, the National Labor Relations Board said Wednesday, establishing a presumption that may hurt the company's defense against future claims of anti-union retaliation.

  • August 14, 2024

    Fuel Co. Can't Halt Fund's Contributions Dispute, Judge Says

    An airplane fueling services company can't escape claims from a Teamsters benefit plan seeking more than $150,000 in unpaid contributions and other costs, a New York federal judge ruled, finding ambiguities with provisions in an agreement about contribution obligations preclude dismissal.

  • August 14, 2024

    Ohio Panel Says Union Wage Dispute Filed In Wrong Court

    An Ohio state appeals court declined to rule on a union's appeal in its suit over whether the state's prevailing wage law pertains to the construction of a college dormitory by a public university because the union sued in the wrong county, avoiding deciding a matter of first impression.

  • August 14, 2024

    Curaleaf Says Ballot Selfie Warrants Redo Of NLRB Election

    A Massachusetts cannabis dispensary asked the National Labor Relations Board to reverse an agency official's decision rejecting the company's claim that a voter tainted a union representation election by sharing a selfie with his ballot, saying the incident raised questions about the secrecy of workers' ballots.

  • August 14, 2024

    Teamsters Black Caucus Backs Harris While Union Waits

    The National Black Caucus of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters threw its support behind Kamala Harris' run for the presidency, despite the fact that the full union has yet to make an endorsement. 

  • August 14, 2024

    Translation Co. Lawfully Fired Interpreter, NLRB Judge Says

    A translation services provider legally fired a worker who made false statements, a National Labor Relations Board judge ruled, saying agency prosecutors' strategy of not calling the terminated employee as a hearing witness "backfired."

  • August 14, 2024

    NYC Hotel License Bill Rattles Hospitality Industry

    A bill that would introduce licenses for hotels in New York City has the hospitality industry up in arms, and attorneys shared concerns with Law360 that the public safety messaging behind the proposal is a shield for measures that would drive up labor costs.

  • August 13, 2024

    Quarry Liable For Layoff Notices, NLRB Tells DC Circ.

    The National Labor Relations Board correctly found that a quarry operator illegally issued layoff notices to union supporters, the agency argued to the D.C. Circuit on Tuesday, saying the company hadn't followed its practice of laying people off during cold weather.

Expert Analysis

  • Employer's Agenda

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    In this Expert Analysis series, in-house employment attorneys discuss the most important issues companies and counsel should plan for amid the current business landscape, and offer practical advice for how to address the year's unique challenges.

  • Cos. Must Brace For More NLRB Scrutiny On Arbitration Pacts

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    In its recent invitation to file briefs on its 2016 Ralphs Grocery ruling, the National Labor Relations Board signaled its desire to restrict arbitration agreements, so employers may want to revisit their contracts with employees and implement training programs to avoid discrimination claims regardless of forum, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

  • Contractor Compliance Hurdles In USDA Labor Rule Proposal

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    Given the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s recent proposal to revive the so-called blacklisting rule requiring certification of compliance with certain labor laws, federal contractors may want to revamp their processes for tracking violations and conducting due diligence in order to avoid the potential for making false representations to the government, says Jack Blum at Polsinelli.

  • How Health Care Employers Can Minimize Threat Of Strikes

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    The COVID-19 pandemic, safety and staffing issues, and the ongoing battle for health care talent mean that worker strikes may become a substantial threat to business operations, but industry employers can reduce the risk of job actions by building employee trust and fostering a culture of respect, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

  • Employer's Agenda: IHG Counsel Talks Remote Investigations

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    The pandemic and shift to remote work have drastically altered workplace investigations, making it imperative for in-house counsel to ensure interim actions, witness interviews and attorney-client privilege are addressed in accordance with the unique challenges posed by the telework landscape, says Sherry Nielsen, senior corporate counsel for labor and employment at IHG Hotels & Resorts.

  • Employer's Agenda: Allied Universal Counsel Talks Synergy

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    Compliance with continually evolving local, state and federal employment laws has become a central focus for in-house legal teams, which means regular communication and collaboration with departments like human resources, finance, IT and field operations are essential, says Deborah Pecci, global employment and litigation counsel at Allied Universal.

  • Judge Jackson's Employment Rulings Embody Pragmatism

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    U.S. Supreme Court nominee Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s body of work on employment and labor law issues as a district court judge suggests she would defy stereotypical political descriptions and offer nuanced, pragmatic opinions if confirmed to the high court, say Stephanie Adler-Paindiris and Stephanie Lewis at Jackson Lewis.

  • Problems For Nonunion Contractors In Biden's Labor Mandate

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    President Joe Biden’s recent order mandating the use of project labor agreements for large-scale federal construction projects is a welcome development for organized labor, with potentially expensive consequences for nonunion contractors and subcontractors, say Michael Schrier and Adam Doerr at Husch Blackwell.

  • A Gov't Contractor's Guide To White House Pro-Union Report

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    The 60 recommendations recently released by the White House Task Force on Worker Organizing and Empowerment are likely to have an immediate impact, especially on government contractors, in three areas — workers' right to organize, employee misclassification, and enforcement expectations, say attorneys at MoFo.

  • Why I'll Miss Arguing Before Justice Breyer

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    Carter Phillips at Sidley shares some of his fondest memories of retiring Justice Stephen Breyer both inside and out of the courtroom, and explains why he thinks the justice’s multipronged questions during U.S. Supreme Court oral arguments were everything an advocate could ask for.

  • 11th Circ. Labor Ruling Shows Limits Of 'Right-To-Work' Laws

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    The Eleventh Circuit’s recent decision in Towns v. Directors Guild, dismissing a terminated employee’s right-to-work claims against a union, primarily serves as a cautionary example of poor timing choices in litigation — but also shows how labor organizations may control access to employment, regardless of statutory protections, says Peter Spanos at Taylor English.

  • How NCAA Can Avoid Athlete Compensation Antitrust Issues

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    As demonstrated by a young soccer player's recent case against the National Women's Soccer League in Oregon federal court, if the NCAA treats athletes as employees and uses collective bargaining, the organization could shape the future of name, image and likeness compensation without running afoul of antitrust laws, says Eric Mills at Miller Nash.

  • Employer's Agenda: Honeywell Counsel Talks ESG

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    As companies face more pressure from shareholders to operate as agents of change, employment attorneys must engage in efforts to reduce risks and optimize opportunities related to environmental, social and governance factors — because workplace issues are salient in all three categories, says Lindsay Hedrick, chief labor and employment counsel at Honeywell.

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