Do you have a policy on:
- social media?
- personal conduct?
- confidentiality of workplace investigations?
- non-disparagement?
- cell phone use (camera too)?
- conflict of interst?
Well, the NLRB believes these policies may contain “over-broad work rules that chill employees’ exercise of their rights under Section 7 of the Act” (the NLRA.) Last week, the NLRB instituted a new standard to examine work rules that makes it easier for the Board to strike them down:
“…the General Counsel must prove that a challenged rule has a reasonable tendency to chill employees from exercising their rights. If the General Counsel does so, then the rule is presumptively unlawful.”
Voila! Is there an employer defense to the General Counsel’s presumption? Sure, but it is a tough one to prove. The employer must show that it cannot advance a legitimate and substantial business interest with a more tailored work rule or policy.
WHY SHOULD I CARE ABOUT THE NLRB? Most private sector employers are covered by the NLRA–with or without a union.
WHAT SHOULD I DO? Like Ferris Bueller said: Life moves pretty fast. So it is with the changes in employment law. Our handbook service is fixed fee and easy to use. Whether you are in 1 state or all 50, we can help. Plus we are lawyers–so our handbooks are caveat free and ready to go (unlike the one you got online or from an HR outfit). Day in, day out, we keep up with the legal obligations wherever your workplace is, so you don’t have to. Contact us.