By Nelson Cary on Posted in Employee DisciplineEmployees probably just lost the ability to tell their boss to f*** off. When considering an employee’s protected activity, the NLRB recently changed its tune on how it analyzes employer discipline—and an employee engaging in abusive conduct does not have the same protections the employee once did. The NLRB announced this change of tune in… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in Employee Discipline,NLRBEmployers firing employees for the content of their social media posts continue to do so at their own risk. An NLRB decision from last week provides a good reminder of this important point. An ambulance company, in two unrelated events, fired two employees for what they posted to Facebook. The first employee, in response to… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRBBy Ashley Manfull Numerous actions by the NLRB’s General Counsel and administrative law judges (highlighted in prior posts on this blog) have caused great concern for labor professionals grappling with the inappropriate comments of employees posted on social media. While these actions have made it difficult enough to determine whether employees’ online comments sufficiently cross the… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRBEarlier this year, the Acting General Counsel met with the Practice and Procedure Committee of the American Bar Association’s Labor and Employment Law Section. This meeting is an annual undertaking. The AGC answered questions the Committee collected from labor law practitioners around the country. Earlier this month, the AGC released a memorandum (pdf) summarizing the questions that… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRBBy Nelson Cary and Ashley Manfull As readers of this blog know, in September 2011, Administrative Law Judge Arthur Amchan was the first NLRB judge to issue a ruling on a Facebook-related termination. In Hispanics United of Buffalo, Inc., ALJ Case No. 3-CA-27872, ALJ Amchan ruled that five employees of a non-profit organization were unlawfully terminated… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRBBy Nelson Cary and James Patrick After posting to Facebook sarcastic comments and pictures about an accident that occurred at a neighboring car dealership, owned by the same entity that owned his dealership, the employer terminated the employment of a salesman. The NLRB unanimously adopted the ALJ’s finding that an employee was lawfully discharged for these… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRBBy Nelson Cary and Ashley Manfull Employers beware. The NLRB remains very interested in what you say in your employee handbook or other written policies and procedures. Its most recent decision even dipped its toe into the much publicized social media world, but didn’t directly confront a “social media policy” of the type the AGC has issued… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRBBy Nelson Cary and Ashley Manfull In an extremely significant report concerning social media cases, issued on May 30, 2012, the NLRB’s Acting General Counsel (AGC) has provided more guidance to employers with social media policies. Perhaps the most helpful information for labor professionals comes at the end of the 22 page report (pdf). In concluding… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRBBy Nelson Cary and Ashley Manfull Recognizing that the increased use of social media by employees commenting on work-related matters has led to many complex issues for employers, the Acting General Counsel (AGC) issued its first report in August 2011 summarizing cases involving social media issues. As the complexities of this issue are far from resolved,… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRBBy Nelson Cary and Ashley Manfull Recent actions by the NLRB’s Acting General Counsel and administrative law judges (highlighted in prior posts on this blog) have caused great concern for labor professionals grappling with the inappropriate comments of employees posted on social media. The fear, based on these prior actions, is that disciplinary action will result… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRBBy Nelson Cary and Ashley Manfull On September 28, 2011, NLRB Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) issued a decision regarding the Section 7 rights of employees who criticize their employers via electronic media. This decision comes approximately three weeks after the decision in Hispanics United of Buffalo, ALJ Case No. 3-CA-27872, where an ALJ ruled that five… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRBBy Nelson Cary and Ashley Manfull On September 2, 2011, an NLRB Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) issued the first decision on the question of employees’ Facebook posts. The decision, applying a liberal interpretation of protected, concerted activity under the NLRA to the online activities of employees, comes on the heels of the Office of the General… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRBNow that social media is more or less ubiquitious, labor professionals must be keenly aware of the complex issues that spring from the intersection of employee relations and social media. As readers of this blog know, this is an area of the law that has gained a significant amount of attention over the last few months. As… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRBThe NLRB, this time through its regional office in Buffalo, New York, has issued another complaint (pdf) against an employer in a case involving Facebook postings. The employer alleged to have violated the NLRA is Hispanics United of Buffalo, Inc., a non-profit organization. According to the NLRB, employee "A" posted allegations of employee "B" to employee… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRBLast November, the NLRB’s regional office in Hartford, Connecticut, issued a complaint against an employer that had disciplined an employee for something she posted on her Facebook page. The unfair labor practice complaint was previously reported on this blog. Yesterday, the NLRB announced that the employer had agreed to settle this charge. As it relates to the portion of the… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRBEmployee use of social media causes labor professionals problems with increasing frequency. Facebook pages, Twitter feeds, and similar outlets seem to provide a never ending stream of possible employee relations scenarios. In an effort to deal with these issues, many businesses have adopted policies governing employee use of these internet resources. In addition to addressing the… Continue Reading
