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The NLRB's 'Joint Employer' Thrust Defies 50 Years of Judicial Precedent

By David J. Kaufmann
January 31, 2016

In October 2015, I published an article titled “NLRB's Misguided 'Joint Employer' Thrust Against Franchising,” (NYLJ, Oct. 22, 2015). I reported on the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) General Counsel's efforts to have franchisors declared “joint employers” of their franchisees' employees, and how the NLRB general counsel's thrust clashes with the business structures and norms of franchising, the Lanham Trademark Act, and every federal and state franchise law extant in the United States.

In this article, I analyze how the NLRB general counsel's approach is refuted by 50 years of virtually unanimous judicial decisions, and address a recent NLRB decision greatly expanding who may be deemed a “joint employer” (and how this decision discarded 30 years of NLRB precedent). I also discuss the harsh consequences that may pertain should the NLRB general counsel succeed in his efforts to have franchisors declared the “joint employers” of their franchisees' employees.

Judicial Precedent

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