On June 8, 2018, National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) General Counsel, Peter B. Robb, released a memorandum (GC 18-04) providing guidance to regional offices under the NLRB’s decision in Boeing. Per Boeing, the NLRB evaluates facially neutral handbook policies and work rules by a balancing test of impact versus justification. Specifically, the potential impact of an employer’s (workplace and handbook) policies and work rules on employees NLRA-protected rights versus the employer’s legitimate justifications for maintaining the policy or rule.
This balancing test was broken down into the following three categories:
In the memo, the general counsel provided in-depth guidance, along with application, of the three categories of rules for regional offices to use when investigating and processing cases. For example, regional offices were directed as follows:
Basically, the guidance provides insight as to how the holding in Boeing will be applied to workplace policies, rules, and company handbooks going forward.
Read the guidance