Law.com Subscribers SAVE 30%
Call 855-808-4530 or email [email protected] to receive your discount on a new subscription.
Social Media and the National Labor Relations Act
For over a year, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has been taking employers to task for intruding too far into employees' social media activities. The NLRB's enforcement actions have provided a well-publicized reminder that the protections of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) are alive and well, applying with as much force to employees' use of social media as to picketing or other traditional forms of collective activity, and to both non-union and unionized workforces.
The NLRB's activity in this area has important consequences for employers. While employers may seek to regulate what employees may or may not say in their social media postings, this objective may be at odds with current NLRB authority. When considering the likelihood of enforcement action, it is noteworthy that the NLRB has taken action against employers ranging from large corporations to small businesses and non-profits. This underscores that the NLRB's enforcement priorities are not limited to any single organizational profile.
We offer below a set of frequently asked questions with answers distilling the key points that U.S. employers should understand about this new area of NLRA enforcement activity. These FAQs are accompanied by practical suggestions that technology counsel can use to help employers navigate these issues in drafting and updating their own social media policies.
The NLRA and Social Media Policies
How does the NLRA affect social media policies? Employers will be familiar with the NLRA as the federal law allowing employees to unionize, bargain collectively with their employer and engage in strikes, picketing or other concerted activities to improve their terms and conditions of employment. Specifically, Section 7 of the NLRA guarantees employees “the right to self-organization, to form, join, or assist labor organizations, to bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing, and to engage in concerted activities for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid and protection.” These rights are known in short as employees' “Section 7 rights” and are available to both union and non-union employees.
The NLRA is not just about unions and collective bargaining, however. The “concerted activities” protected by Section 7 include a broader right to communicate about wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment. This right extends to communications with co-employees as well as third parties. The NLRA has been interpreted to prohibit employers from taking actions that would have a “chilling effect” on employees' protected activities, such as adopting policies that prohibit or discourage employees from disclosing their wages or working conditions. These days, the NLRB is finding employers to run afoul of the same principles if their social media policies discourage employees from posting about matters related to terms and conditions of employment. As discussed below, however, the NLRB's application of these principles to social media policies may not be obvious or intuitive to employers, especially non-unionized employers with less exposure to the NLRA.
What types of employees are protected by the NLRA? The rights under the NLRA apply equally to unionized and non-unionized workforces. However, the NLRA does not cover supervisory or managerial employees. As a result, social media policies that apply solely to senior management may not be subject to these NLRA principles. If your company's social media policy applies to rank-and-file employees, however ' as most do ' it likely will be subject to these NLRA principles.
This premium content is locked for Entertainment Law & Finance subscribers only
ENJOY UNLIMITED ACCESS TO THE SINGLE SOURCE OF OBJECTIVE LEGAL ANALYSIS, PRACTICAL INSIGHTS, AND NEWS IN ENTERTAINMENT LAW.
- Stay current on the latest information, rulings, regulations, and trends
- Includes practical, must-have information on copyrights, royalties, AI, and more
- Tap into expert guidance from top entertainment lawyers and experts
Already a have an account? Sign In Now Log In Now
For enterprise-wide or corporate acess, please contact Customer Service at [email protected] or 877-256-2473
Major Differences In UK, U.S. Copyright Laws
This article highlights how copyright law in the United Kingdom differs from U.S. copyright law, and points out differences that may be crucial to entertainment and media businesses familiar with U.S law that are interested in operating in the United Kingdom or under UK law. The article also briefly addresses contrasts in UK and U.S. trademark law.
The Article 8 Opt In
The Article 8 opt-in election adds an additional layer of complexity to the already labyrinthine rules governing perfection of security interests under the UCC. A lender that is unaware of the nuances created by the opt in (may find its security interest vulnerable to being primed by another party that has taken steps to perfect in a superior manner under the circumstances.
Strategy vs. Tactics: Two Sides of a Difficult Coin
With each successive large-scale cyber attack, it is slowly becoming clear that ransomware attacks are targeting the critical infrastructure of the most powerful country on the planet. Understanding the strategy, and tactics of our opponents, as well as the strategy and the tactics we implement as a response are vital to victory.
Legal Possession: What Does It Mean?
Possession of real property is a matter of physical fact. Having the right or legal entitlement to possession is not "possession," possession is "the fact of having or holding property in one's power." That power means having physical dominion and control over the property.
Removing Restrictive Covenants In New York
In Rockwell v. Despart, the New York Supreme Court, Third Department, recently revisited a recurring question: When may a landowner seek judicial removal of a covenant restricting use of her land?