NLRB Delays Notice Posting

The NLRB announced yesterday that it will delay the implementation date of its employee rights notice posting from November 14, 2011 until January 31, 2012. The NLRB says that the reason for the delay is to provide more time to "educate" employers about the rule.

This delay does not alter the fact that litigation will proceed to stop the NLRB's implementation of this rule. However, as we advised employers in our September Employment Law Bulletin, employers should focus on and develop comprehensive, forthright union-free communications to employees, rather than considering a companion "counter-point" posting.

As we stated in our September Employment Law Bulletin:

Employer thoughts about handling the notice posting have ranged from posting it in an innocuous place so it will be ignored like most other postings, posted with a component poster that also elaborates on an employee's right to remain union-free, and combining the poster with other pre-fab after-market posters that include all required postings for a particular jurisdiction (such as the ones often marketed to employers). Most employers we have spoken with border-to-border and coast-to-coast expressed the preference of posting it without fanfare. They believe that employees generally do not read federal and state notices at work and will not read this one, either.

While we think the latter approach is the preferred approach, we do not assume that the posting will be unread. Rather, we recommend that employers get serious and more aggressive with their communications to the workforce about the importance of remaining union-free, independent of the new posting requirement and without drawing attention to it. We do not expect the NLRB to back down from its active agenda to increase the power and influence of unions. As a result, employers need to be proactive in communicating their union-free message. For example, how is the employer's union-free message communicated during new employee orientation? Is it a generic "we don't need a third party" statement, or is it a robust discussion of why your workforce has chosen to remain union-free and the company's commitment to a culture where that remains the outcome? What communications do you provide to your existing workforce? Is it simply a "no third party" statement in the handbook, or is remaining union-free part of regular business discussions? It is appropriate in these discussions to explain how unionization is one of several threats to the opportunities afforded by the organization to its workers. In communicating this message, emphasize why remaining union-free is part of your organization's overall goals of remaining competitive, creative, and engaged with the workforce.

If you have any questions, please contact Richard Lehr (205.323.9260) and Matt Stiles (205.323.9275).