Labor

  • September 02, 2025

    Two Unions Fight Trump Order Ending Labor Rights

    Unions representing thousands of employees of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the National Weather Service challenged in a lawsuit Tuesday in D.C. federal court an executive order by President Donald Trump ending their collective bargaining agreements. 

  • September 02, 2025

    Littler Report: Wage Rule Limbo, DEI Reversal, NLRB Shakeup

    Federal government efforts to end diversity, equity and inclusion programs; states’ industry-specific wage hikes that have reached new heights and a National Labor Relations Board that is stuck without a quorum are employment law trends to watch, Littler Mendelson PC’s Workplace Policy Institute said in an annual report. Here, Law360 explores the report’s findings.

  • September 02, 2025

    Cos. Prefer Painters To Laborers For Seattle Bridge Job

    The National Labor Relations Board should award scaffolding work on a Seattle bridge repaving project to the Painters union, not the Laborers union, two contractors told the board, while the Laborers union asked the board to toss the jurisdictional dispute.

  • September 02, 2025

    NLRB Pushes 6th Circ. To Find Construction Co. In Contempt

    The National Labor Relations Board defended its request to hold a construction company in contempt for not fully complying with a Sixth Circuit enforcement ruling, saying the appeals court's decision clearly ordered the business to provide requested information to a union.

  • September 02, 2025

    2nd Circ. Backs X In Arb. Fees In Severance Case

    Courts can't sort out who pays arbitration fees, and employers' refusal to pay such fees isn't a failure to arbitrate, the Second Circuit ruled Tuesday, siding with X in a case accusing the social media platform of owing workers severance.

  • September 02, 2025

    Bay Area Rock Climbing Gym Workers Granted Union Vote

    A National Labor Relations Board official has given workers at four Bay Area rock climbing gyms the green light to vote on representation by Workers United, rejecting Touchstone Climbing Inc.'s argument that any bargaining unit formed should include workers from all nine of its area gyms.

  • August 29, 2025

    NLRB Attys Seek Rehire Order For REI Union Drive Leader

    National Labor Relations Board prosecutors have asked a federal judge to order REI to rehire a worker who began an organizing drive at an Oregon store, saying firing the prominent union supporter "stifled" workers' rights and will continue to do so without an injunction.

  • August 29, 2025

    Former National Security Officials Say Union EO Went Too Far

    Although President Donald Trump said he was protecting national security when he opened the door for dozens of agencies to shred their union contracts, he was actually retaliating against the unions for speaking out against him, a coalition of former senior national security officials told the Ninth Circuit on Friday.

  • August 29, 2025

    Ex-Philly Labor Leader Cites Ailing Wife In Prison Release Bid

    John Dougherty, the former business manager of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 98 in Philadelphia, has asked a federal judge to free him early from his six-year prison term for bribery and embezzlement so that he can go home to care for his ailing wife, who he claims will ultimately die without his assistance.

  • August 29, 2025

    NLRB Atty Joins Blank Rome's Labor Group In Philadelphia

    An attorney who spent the first 15 years of his legal career working with National Labor Relations Board has recently moved into private practice and joined Blank Rome LLP's growing labor team.

  • August 29, 2025

    4 Appellate Arguments For Benefits Attys To Watch In Sept.

    Yellow Corp. seeks to revive a $137 million breach dispute against the Teamsters at the Tenth Circuit, married retirees will ask the Eleventh Circuit to restart a pension conversion fight, and the en banc Fifth Circuit reconsiders a challenge to a rule implementing a 2020 surprise health billing law.

  • August 29, 2025

    Medieval Times Suppressed Failed Union Push, NLRB Told

    National Labor Relations Board prosecutors urged the board to affirm a judge's ruling that Medieval Times suppressed a union drive by dangling withheld raises, filing a baseless trademark suit and firing a union backer, saying the ruling aligns with the evidence and board precedent.

  • August 29, 2025

    NY Forecast: 2nd Circ. Hears Northwell COVID Vaccine Suit

    This week, the Second Circuit will consider whether to revive a suit brought by former healthcare workers who claimed they were discriminated against on the basis of their religion when they were fired for refusing to take the COVID-19 vaccine.

  • August 29, 2025

    SoCal Hotel Looks To Re-Up Challenge To UNITE HERE Vote

    A National Labor Relations Board regional director should have held a hearing on four of a Southern California hotel's objections to its workers' unionization, the Hilton-affiliated hotel told the agency official, requesting review of her decision to certify a UNITE HERE local as the hotel staff's bargaining representative.

  • August 29, 2025

    Calif. Forecast: NLRB Fights Co. With Union-Busting Claims

    In the coming week, attorneys should watch for arguments in a National Labor Relations Board case against an environmental and engineering consultant. Here's a look at that case and other labor and employment matters on deck in California.

  • August 29, 2025

    States Say White House Caved In AmeriCorps Cut Fight

    A coalition consisting of Maryland, two dozen other states and D.C. that is challenging the Trump administration's attempts to slash AmeriCorps programs and withhold funds announced Friday the White House has chosen to release nearly $185 million as it faced "a blistering legal defeat."

  • August 28, 2025

    Trump Ends Bargaining Rights For Workers At More Agencies

    President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order that purports to remove collective bargaining rights from federal workers at several more agencies, including NASA, the National Weather Service and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, a move that one union slammed as "retaliation."

  • August 28, 2025

    Local Gov'ts Seek Win In Suit Over HHS-Canceled Grants

    Four local governments and a union asked a D.C. federal judge on Wednesday to declare that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services acted unlawfully when it canceled $11 billion in grants awarded to improve public health systems around the country.

  • August 28, 2025

    6th Circ. Backs Calculation Redo On $11M Fund Exit Liability

    The Sixth Circuit on Wednesday backed a Michigan federal judge's determination that a pension fund's actuary must recalculate a paving company's withdrawal liability, citing recently clarified precedent and agreeing that an $11 million sum was erroneously calculated.

  • August 28, 2025

    Unions Urge Judgment Blocking DOGE's Agency Access

    Unions and advocacy groups asked a Washington, D.C., federal judge Thursday for a win before trial in their lawsuit claiming agencies unlawfully provided Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency access to sensitive data, saying the agencies departed from their usual data access procedures without explanation.

  • August 28, 2025

    Judge Keeps Co.'s Challenge To NLRB Structure In Texas

    A marine construction company may continue pursuing its constitutional challenge to the National Labor Relations Board's structure in Texas federal court, a Texas federal judge has ruled, rejecting the agency's bid to transfer the case to California federal court.

  • August 28, 2025

    NLRB Judge Undoes Firing Of Hospital Nurse For Social Post

    A North Carolina hospital violated the National Labor Relations Act by firing a nurse who posted on her private Facebook page that she had a vendetta against an unnamed manager and was "coming for her," a National Labor Relations Board judge ruled, saying the post's context rendered it NLRA-protected activity.

  • August 28, 2025

    School Union Inks $110K Deal To End EEOC Race Bias Suit

    A school district labor union has agreed to pay $110,000 to resolve a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit claiming it discriminated against a Black custodian by challenging his promotion, according to a filing Thursday in Illinois federal court.

  • August 28, 2025

    Trump Fires Democratic Member Of Rail Regulator

    President Donald Trump on Thursday fired a Democratic member of the Surface Transportation Board who has opposed further consolidation in the rail industry, ousting Robert Primus just as the board prepares to consider the proposed megamerger between Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern.

  • August 28, 2025

    PBGC Must Reconsider Bakery Union's $132M Bailout Bid

    The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. must formally reexamine whether union bakery drivers can collect $132 million from a federal pension rescue program, a New York federal judge said Thursday after lifting a stay on the order following the Second Circuit's decision to reject the agency's rehearing bid.

Expert Analysis

  • Handbook Hot Topics: State Laws Shape Drug-Testing Policies

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    With the growing popularity of state laws regulating drug testing, employers must consider the benefits and costs associated with maintaining such policies, particularly where they are subject to conflicting state laws, say attorneys at Kutak Rock.

  • Union Interference Lessons From 5th Circ. Apple Ruling

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    The Fifth Circuit's recent holding that Apple did not violate the National Labor Relations Act during a store's union organizing drive provides guidance on what constitutes coercive interrogation and clarifies how consistently enforced workplace policies may be applied to union literature, say attorneys at Proskauer.

  • NY Bill Would Complicate Labor Law Amid NLRB Uncertainty

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    The New York Legislature passed a bill that, if enacted, would grant state agencies the power to enforce federal labor law, potentially causing significant challenges for employers as they could be subject to both state and federal regulators depending on the National Labor Relations Board's operational status, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Corp. Human Rights Regulatory Landscape Is Fragmented

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    Given the complexity of compliance with nations' overlapping human rights laws, multinational companies need to be cognizant of the evolving approaches to modern slavery transparency, and proposals that could reduce mandatory due diligence and reporting requirements, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

  • Forced Labor Bans Hold Steady Amid Shifts In Global Trade

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    As businesses try to navigate shifting regulatory trends affecting human rights and sustainability, forced labor import bans present a zone of relative stability, notwithstanding outstanding questions about the future of enforcement, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

  • 7 Ways Employers Can Avoid Labor Friction Over AI

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    As artificial intelligence use in the workplace emerges as a key labor relations topic in the U.S. and Europe, employers looking to reduce reputational risk and prevent costly disputes should consider proactive strategies to engage with unions, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

  • Wash. Law Highlights Debate Over Unemployment For Strikers

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    A new Washington state law that will allow strikers to receive unemployment benefits during work stoppages raises questions about whether such laws subsidize disruptions to the economy or whether they are preempted by federal labor law, says Daniel Johns at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Handbook Hot Topics: Shifting Worker Accommodation Rules

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    Since President Donald Trump took office, many changes have directly affected how employers must address accommodation requests, particularly those concerning pregnancy-related medical conditions and religious beliefs, underscoring the importance of regularly reviewing and updating accommodation policies and procedures, say attorneys at Kutak Rock.

  • Water Cooler Talk: Performance Review Tips From 'Severance'

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    In the hit series "Severance," the eerie depiction of performance reviews, which drone on for hours and focus on frivolous issues, can instruct employers about best practices to follow and mistakes to avoid when conducting employee evaluations, say Tracey Diamond and Emily Schifter at Troutman.

  • High Court Order On Board Firings Is Cold Comfort For Fed

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent Trump v. Wilcox order, upholding the firings of two independent agency board members during appeal, raises concerns about the future of removal protections for Federal Reserve System members, and thus the broader politicization of U.S. monetary policy, say attorneys at Squire Patton.

  • SpaceX Labor Suit May Bring Cosmic Jurisdictional Shifts

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    The National Mediation Board's upcoming decision about whether SpaceX falls under the purview of the National Labor Relations Act or the Railway Labor Act could establish how jurisdictional boundaries are determined for employers that toe the line, with tangible consequences for decades to come, say attorneys at Davis Wright.

  • What Employers Should Know About New Wash. WARN Act

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    Washington state's Securing Timely Notification and Benefits for Laid-Off Employees Act will soon require 60 days' notice for certain mass layoffs and business closures, so employers should understand how their obligations differ from those under the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act before implementing layoffs or closings, say attorneys at Littler.

  • Handbook Hot Topics: Relying On FLSA Regs Amid Repeals

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    Because handbook policies often rely on federal regulations, President Donald Trump's recent actions directing agency heads to repeal "facially unlawful regulations" may leave employers wondering what may change, but they should be mindful that even a repealed regulation may have accurately stated the law, say attorneys at Kutak Rock.