Labor

  • August 18, 2026

    Union Locals Must Arbitrate Probation Row, Judge Says

    A Service Employees International Union local must arbitrate a dispute over its decision to extend a union employee's probationary period by 180 days, a California federal judge has ruled, finding that the United Auto Workers local representing the worker followed the proper procedure for pursuing a grievance.

  • August 18, 2026

    NLRB 'BLM' Cases Hinge On Ties To Workplace, Experts Say

    A recent National Labor Relations Board decision finding Whole Foods was within its rights to bar employees from wearing Black Lives Matter messages at work shows how fact-specific the board's analysis of protections for political advocacy remains even after a Biden board decision that found similar displays lawful, experts said.

  • August 18, 2026

    UAW Says It Doesn't Belong In GM Worker's Bias Suit

    The United Auto Workers shouldn't be a defendant in a lawsuit filed by a General Motors employee who alleged that she experienced disability discrimination in the workplace, the union argued, telling a Tennessee federal judge that it hasn't discriminated against the employee in any way.

  • August 18, 2026

    United Beats Most Claims In Flight Attendants' Wage Suit

    A New Jersey federal judge on Tuesday tossed three state wage claims brought by United Airlines flight attendants in a suit alleging they were not paid for preflight, post-flight and layover work, finding federal labor law requires the disputes to be resolved through arbitration rather than in court.

  • August 18, 2026

    Research Co. Fired Worker Over Pay Talk, NLRB Judge Says

    A clinical research company violated federal labor law by firing a worker who discussed payroll issues with other employees, a National Labor Relations Board judge has ruled, rejecting the company's argument that the worker was an independent contractor.

  • August 18, 2026

    NLRB Defends Remedy In Meat Distributor Layoff Case

    A New York meat distributor can't ask the D.C. Circuit to forbid the National Labor Relations Board from making employers cover workers' layoff-related expenses when the layoff violates federal labor law, as the distributor never raised this argument before the board, the agency said.

  • August 18, 2026

    Shell Units Wrongly Withheld Race Data, NLRB Judge Says

    Three Shell affiliates violated federal labor law by refusing to give United Steelworkers the racial demographics of their employees, a National Labor Relations Board judge ruled, finding that the information was relevant due to the nondiscrimination language in the collective bargaining agreement between the parties.

  • August 17, 2026

    NLRB Official Sets Union Vote By Mail At Utah Tiling Co.

    A union representation election at a Utah tile installation company should take place by mail-in ballot because certain voters and jobsites are scattered outside the company's Salt Lake City facility, the head of the National Labor Relations Board's Denver regional office has determined.

  • August 17, 2026

    GM Can't Use Prior Deal Defense To Halt Bias Suit, Judge Says

    A Tennessee federal judge on Monday rejected General Motors' bid to toss an employee's lawsuit alleging the company failed to promote her because of her sex, rejecting the company's claim that the employee was barred from suing over allegations the parties previously resolved.

  • August 17, 2026

    Remark Over Union Organizing Illegal, NLRB Judge Says

    An Oregon medical center violated federal labor law when a labor consultant told employees they would have a hard time improving their health insurance options in bargaining if they unionized, a National Labor Relations Board judge held Monday, saying the remark went beyond describing the uncertainty present in bargaining.

  • August 17, 2026

    Strike Questions At Fore As Calif. Gig Drivers Near Unionizing

    Uber and Lyft drivers in California are poised to be among the first gig economy workers in the nation to labor under a collective bargaining agreement after the state accepted a union's proof of support, but the strength of that deal may hinge on the union's capability to mobilize a large, sprawling unit.

  • August 17, 2026

    Hartford HealthCare Told To Double-Check Privilege Claims

    Hartford HealthCare has agreed to re-review 113 documents over which the hospital operator asserted attorney-client privilege in an antitrust lawsuit by a Teamsters health plan and a local Connecticut transit district, following a federal magistrate judge's concerns about a nearly 1,000-page privilege log.

  • August 17, 2026

    Judge Blocks Creamery Closure After Union Retaliation Claim

    A Vermont federal judge blocked the closure of a century-old creamery in the city of St. Albans on Monday, saying a Teamsters local convincingly argued that the billion-dollar dairy cooperative that acquired the creamery in 2019 is shuttering the facility to retaliate against the union for striking last fall.

  • August 17, 2026

    Littler Names Firm's First Pro Bono Counsel

    Littler Mendelson PC announced Monday that it had appointed its first pro bono counsel to enhance the firm's efforts supporting access to justice.

  • August 17, 2026

    7th Circ. Reverses Alcoa Union Retirees' Lifetime Benefits Win

    The Seventh Circuit reversed an Indiana federal court's decision holding that certain union retirees of aluminum giant Alcoa and their beneficiaries had a vested right to health benefits for life, finding error with the lower court's judicial estoppel analysis that formed the basis for its judgment on liability.

  • August 14, 2026

    NLRB Won't Rethink Hearing Order In Union Vote Row

    A split National Labor Relations Board on Friday declined to revisit an agency official's order setting a hearing on a union's objections to a representation election at a Mississippi energy company, with one member saying the official didn't explain how the allegations could be grounds for setting aside the election.

  • August 14, 2026

    SAG-AFTRA Plan Members Seek Final OK Of Data Breach Deal

    Members of the SAG-AFTRA Health Plan have asked a California federal court for final approval of a $950,000 class action settlement resolving claims that a 2024 data breach exposed the personal and medical information of approximately 94,000 plan members.

  • August 14, 2026

    ASU Targeted Food Workers' Wage Protests, Union Says

    Arizona State University placed overly broad restrictions on union members' campus protests over the wages of university food service workers and used unreasonable force to arrest two union protestors during graduation, a UNITE HERE local has alleged in a lawsuit filed in Arizona federal court.

  • August 14, 2026

    NY Forecast: Judge Weighs Tossing Cancer Gene Bias Suit

    This week, a New York federal judge will consider a shared workspace operator's request to dismiss a lawsuit brought by a former worker who claims she was forced out of her job after being diagnosed with a genetic mutation that restricted her ability to work.

  • August 14, 2026

    Worker Says GM Can't Escape FMLA, Bias Claims

    A General Motors assembly plant worker who alleges the company repeatedly disciplined her for taking disability-related medical leave has urged a Tennessee federal court to reject GM's bid to dismiss her case, arguing her claims are adequately pleaded and that the automaker's own conduct demonstrates unlawful discrimination.

  • August 14, 2026

    Calif. Forecast: SEIU Local, UAW Local In Probation Dispute

    In the week ahead, attorneys should watch for a hearing on respective arbitration and dismissal bids in a dispute involving a United Auto Workers local and a Service Employees International Union local. Here's a look at that case and other labor and employment matters on deck in California.

  • August 14, 2026

    Hospital Owed Bargaining Over Uniforms, NLRB Judge Says

    A New York City hospital violated federal labor law by imposing a branded-uniform policy without bargaining with its nurses' union, a National Labor Relations Board judge ruled, saying the dress code change was significant enough to require negotiations.

  • August 14, 2026

    Dispensary Operator Must Arbitrate Firing Claims, Union Says

    A United Food and Commercial Workers local has asked a Nevada federal court to force a cannabis dispensary operator to arbitrate grievances challenging the terminations of two workers, arguing that the operator must arbitrate the dispute under a collective bargaining agreement between the local and the operator's predecessor.

  • August 13, 2026

    Labor Board's Majority May Rethink Recognition Bar

    The National Labor Relations Board's Republican members on Thursday signaled interest in rethinking a policy that bars elections to replace unions for up to a year after employers begin bargaining with unions they voluntarily recognize.

  • August 13, 2026

    Hospital Can't Undo Union Election Agreement, NLRB Says

    A National Labor Relations Board panel on Thursday denied a Michigan hospital's bid to review a regional official's decision certifying a union's election win, rejecting the hospital's argument that the official erred by failing to approve a post-election agreement between the parties.

Expert Analysis

  • 8 Lessons Yellow Corp. Layoffs Can Teach Distressed Cos.

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    A Delaware bankruptcy court’s recent decision, examining trucking company Yellow Corp.’s abrupt termination of roughly 25,500 employees, offers financially distressed businesses a road map for navigating layoffs under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

  • 10 Key Worker-Friendly California Employment Law Updates

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    New employment laws in California expand employee rights, transparency and enforcement mechanisms, and failing to educate department managers on these changes could put employers at risk, says Melanie Ronen at Stradley Ronon.

  • 7 Employment Contracts Issues Facing DOL Scrutiny

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    A growing trend of U.S. Department of Labor enforcement against employment practices that limit workers' rights and avoid legal responsibility shines a light on seven unique contractual provisions that violate federal labor laws, and face agressive litigation from the labor solicitor, says Thomas Starks at Freeman Mathis.

  • How Trump Presidency May Influence NLRB's Next Phase

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    Attorneys at Paul Hastings discuss how last year’s key National Labor Relations Board developments may progress once President-elect Donald Trump takes office, including the wave of lawsuits challenging the board’s constitutionality and two landmark board decisions that upset decades of precedent.

  • How Trump Admin May Approach AI In The Workplace

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    Key indicators suggest that the incoming Trump administration will adopt a deregulatory approach to artificial intelligence, allowing states to fill the void, so it is critical that employers pay close attention to developing legal authority concerning AI tools, say attorneys at Littler.

  • Top 10 Legal Issues This Year For Transportation Industry GCs

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    General counsel must carefully consider numerous legal and policy challenges facing the automotive and transportation industry in the year to come, especially while navigating new technologies, regulations and global markets, says Francesco Liberatore at Squire Patton.

  • Top 10 Employer Resolutions For 2025

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    While companies must monitor for policy shifts under the new administration in 2025, it will also be a year to play it safe and remember the basics, such as the importance of documenting retention policies and conducting swift investigations into workplace complaints, say attorneys at Krevolin Horst.

  • NLRB Likely To Fill Vacuum After NMB Jurisdiction Ruling

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    The National Mediation Board's recent ruling in Swissport Cargo Services LP abandoned decades of precedent by concluding the Railway Labor Act doesn’t apply to airline service providers, likely leading the National Labor Relations Board to assert its jurisdiction instead and potentially causing more operational disruptions and labor strife, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Ring In The New Year With An Updated Employee Handbook

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    One of the best New Year's resolutions employers can make is to update their employee handbooks, given that a handbook can mitigate, or even prevent, costly litigation as long as it accounts for recent changes in laws, court rulings and agency decisions, say attorneys at Kutak Rock.

  • 9 Things To Expect From Trump's Surprising DOL Pick

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    The unexpected nomination of Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer, R-Ore., to lead the U.S. Department of Labor reflects a blend of pro-business and pro-labor leanings, and signals that employers should prepare for a mix of continuity and moderate adjustments in the coming years, say attorneys at Fisher Phillips.

  • Why State Captive Audience Laws Matter After NLRB Decision

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    As employers focus on complying with the National Labor Relations Board's new position that captive audience meetings violate federal labor law, they should also be careful not to overlook state captive audience laws that prohibit additional types of company meetings and communications, says Karla Grossenbacher at Seyfarth.

  • Pa. Ruling Highlights Challenges Of Employer Arb. Appeals

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    A Pennsylvania federal court's recent ruling in Welch Foods v. General Teamsters Local Union No. 397 demonstrates the inherent difficulties employers face when seeking relief from labor arbitration decisions through appeals in court — and underscores how employers are faced with often conflicting legal priorities, says Daniel Johns at Cozen O'Connor.

  • NLRB One-Two Punch Curbs Employer Anti-Organizing Tools

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    The National Labor Relations Board’s recent decisions in Siren Retail and Amazon, limiting employer speech about the impact of unionization and outlawing captive audience meetings, severely curtail employers' arsenal of tools to combat an organizing campaign — though this may soon change under a new administration, say attorneys at Benesch.

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