NLRB General Counsel Issues Memos on Union Obligations

The General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board, Peter Robb, recently issued two General Counsel Memos dealing primarily with union obligations under the National Labor Relations Act. I expect the Board to adopt the GC’s recommended positions.

In GC 19-04, Robb wants to overturn current law requiring unions to disclose only the percentage reduction of union dues for employees who wish to be nonmembers and thus pay only the portion of dues for a union’s representational activities (i.e. Beck objectors). The GC wants to extend a union’s obligation to disclosing the reduced amount of dues and fees for objectors when it notifies these employees of their legal right to be nonmembers.

Second, the GC wants to prohibit union dues-checkoff authorizations limiting an employee’s right to revoke that authorization at contract expiration by imposing an earlier revocation window period.

The GC also wants to prohibit employers from continuing to deduct an employee’s dues after receiving an employee’s written revocation request made at or following expiration of a CBA. Likewise, the GC wants to prohibit unions from continuing to receive those dues.

Matt Austin owns Austin Legal, LLC, a boutique law firm based in Ohio that limits its representation to employers dealing with labor, employment, and OSHA matters. You can reach Matt by calling him at (614) 843-3041 or emailing him at Matt@MattAustinLaborLaw.com.