Pension withdrawal liability continues to be a major, penal factor to unionized companies. A rubber company recently argued that it should not be subject to a $1.7 million withdrawal liability assessment because the withdrawal from a multi-employer pension plan was union-mandated. The Company argued that this withdrawal liability should have been calculated using the Pension…

The United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) recently held workshops to teach undocumented immigrants working in meatpacking and food processing plants how to apply for the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA) program announced by President Obama in November 2014. DAPA enables eligible undocumented immigrants to apply to the Department…

ISS Facility Services Inc. and IBT Local 210 (Teamsters) violated several sections of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) when they encouraged janitorial employees at JFK Airport’s Terminal 2 to join the Teamsters. A union official further violated the NLRA by threatening employees with termination unless they signed the dues checkoff authorization cards. ISS provides…

A National Labor Relations Board administrative law judge (ALJ) recently found the overly broad language in T-Mobile USA Inc.’s employee handbook violated federal labor law. The ALJ concluded that this language restricted, or could reasonably be interpreted to restrict, employees from discussing their terms and conditions of employment. One section at issue stated, “This Handbook…

A Nevada hospital system’s policy requiring employees to speak English at all times when on duty, even when in non-patient care areas, violated the National Labor Relations Act because it could restrict employees from discussing the terms and conditions of their employment. Specifically, the health system required employees to speak only in English “when conducting…

The NLRB recently addressed a common practice among unions called secondary boycotting. A secondary boycott is a union tactic where the union pressures innocent parties to stop doing business with a targeted employer. The Culinary Union in Las Vegas has aggressively implemented secondary boycotts against non-union casinos, hotels, and restaurants. For example, the Union has…