Labor

  • August 28, 2025

    Trump Ends Bargaining Rights For Workers At More Agencies

    President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order that purports to remove collective bargaining rights from federal workers at several more agencies, including NASA, the National Weather Service and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, a move that one union slammed as "retaliation."

  • August 28, 2025

    Local Gov'ts Seek Win In Suit Over HHS-Canceled Grants

    Four local governments and a union asked a D.C. federal judge on Wednesday to declare that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services acted unlawfully when it canceled $11 billion in grants awarded to improve public health systems around the country.

  • August 28, 2025

    6th Circ. Backs Calculation Redo On $11M Fund Exit Liability

    The Sixth Circuit on Wednesday backed a Michigan federal judge's determination that a pension fund's actuary must recalculate a paving company's withdrawal liability, citing recently clarified precedent and agreeing that an $11 million sum was erroneously calculated.

  • August 28, 2025

    Unions Urge Judgment Blocking DOGE's Agency Access

    Unions and advocacy groups asked a Washington, D.C., federal judge Thursday for a win before trial in their lawsuit claiming agencies unlawfully provided Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency access to sensitive data, saying the agencies departed from their usual data access procedures without explanation.

  • August 28, 2025

    Judge Keeps Co.'s Challenge To NLRB Structure In Texas

    A marine construction company may continue pursuing its constitutional challenge to the National Labor Relations Board's structure in Texas federal court, a Texas federal judge has ruled, rejecting the agency's bid to transfer the case to California federal court.

  • August 28, 2025

    NLRB Judge Undoes Firing Of Hospital Nurse For Social Post

    A North Carolina hospital violated the National Labor Relations Act by firing a nurse who posted on her private Facebook page that she had a vendetta against an unnamed manager and was "coming for her," a National Labor Relations Board judge ruled, saying the post's context rendered it NLRA-protected activity.

  • August 28, 2025

    School Union Inks $110K Deal To End EEOC Race Bias Suit

    A school district labor union has agreed to pay $110,000 to resolve a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit claiming it discriminated against a Black custodian by challenging his promotion, according to a filing Thursday in Illinois federal court.

  • August 28, 2025

    Trump Fires Democratic Member Of Rail Regulator

    President Donald Trump on Thursday fired a Democratic member of the Surface Transportation Board who has opposed further consolidation in the rail industry, ousting Robert Primus just as the board prepares to consider the proposed megamerger between Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern.

  • August 28, 2025

    PBGC Must Reconsider Bakery Union's $132M Bailout Bid

    The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. must formally reexamine whether union bakery drivers can collect $132 million from a federal pension rescue program, a New York federal judge said Thursday after lifting a stay on the order following the Second Circuit's decision to reject the agency's rehearing bid.

  • August 28, 2025

    Labor Atty Rejoins McGuireWoods After Food Company Stint

    McGuireWoods LLP announced Wednesday that it has welcomed an alumnus back to its labor and employment team following his stint as an associate general counsel for packaged meat company Smithfield Foods Inc.

  • August 27, 2025

    Campbell's Seeks Toss Of Worker's Donning Time Suit

    Campbell's sought dismissal of a former employee's proposed collective action alleging the soup producer didn't compensate workers for time spent putting on personal protective equipment, telling a New Jersey federal judge the claims must first be assessed in the grievance process under a labor contract.

  • August 27, 2025

    7th Circ. Denies Alcoa's Bid To Stay Health Benefits Injunction

    An aluminum manufacturer must comply with an injunction ordering it to reinstate union-represented retirees' healthcare benefits while it argues in court that it was allowed to transition them to health reimbursement accounts in 2021, the Seventh Circuit held, rejecting the company's request for the court to pause the injunction.

  • August 27, 2025

    Hospitals' Merger Precludes Union Vote, NLRB Official Says

    A National Labor Relations Board official denied an Office and Professional Employees International Union local an election to confirm its representation of 50 workers at a California children's hospital amid its merger into the University of California system.

  • August 27, 2025

    Union Dodges Medical Assault Claim Over Vax Mandate

    A mariners union has escaped a deck officer's accusation of attempted medical assault, with a California federal judge tossing his claim that the union teamed up with his former employer, Matson Navigation Co., to pressure him to get a COVID-19 vaccination.

  • August 26, 2025

    Uber Eats To Pay Couriers $15M To End Seattle's Wage Claims

    Uber Eats has inked a $15 million settlement to end allegations that it flouted the city of Seattle's worker protection laws by failing to pay drivers what they were promised, including bonus earnings and minimum payments for canceled fares. 

  • August 26, 2025

    Wash. Judge Shoots Down Ex-SEIU Organizer's Bias Suit

    A Washington federal judge has tossed a fired Service Employees International Union organizer's lawsuit against the union, saying the ex-organizer's "vague" complaint lacks facts to substantiate its claims that she was discriminated against, underpaid and wrongfully discharged.

  • August 26, 2025

    UPS Fights Union Bid To Block Resignation Incentive Program

    An Illinois federal judge can't block UPS from implementing a resignation incentive program until the Teamsters local that objects to it has finished challenging it through the grievance process, UPS argued, asking the judge to dissolve the temporary restraining order she issued and deny the union's injunction request.

  • August 26, 2025

    NLRB Knocks Co.'s Bargaining Refusal Defense At 6th Circ.

    The Sixth Circuit lacks jurisdiction to consider a construction company's challenge to the National Labor Relations Board dismissing a worker's union ouster petitions, the board argued, saying the business can't refuse to negotiate to fight the toss of decertification petitions.

  • August 26, 2025

    X Corp. Settles WARN Act Suit With Worker Terminated In 2022

    A former X Corp. employee has settled its lawsuit alleging that he wasn't given a heads-up before the company conducted mass layoffs in 2022 following Elon Musk's takeover, prompting a California federal judge to conditionally dismiss the case on Monday, two weeks before trial had been set to begin.

  • August 26, 2025

    Willig Williams Atty Named Philly Leader Of Labor Group

    An attorney at Willig Williams & Davidson's Philadelphia office with more than 15 years of experience representing workers has been tapped to lead the city's branch of the Labor and Employment Relations Association through next spring.

  • August 26, 2025

    Littler Adds Former NLRB Atty, Corporate Counsel In Seattle

    Littler Mendelson PC has brought on a former National Labor Relations Board attorney and corporate labor counsel as a shareholder in its Seattle office, the firm announced.

  • August 25, 2025

    California Tribe Looks To Undo Casino Union Arbitration Order

    A California federal judge should nix an arbitrator's finding that a labor agreement, rather than tribal law, governs unionization at a Native American casino, the Wilton Rancheria tribe argued in a new lawsuit.

  • August 25, 2025

    Unions Urge 9th Circ. To Uphold Order Halting Bargaining EO

    The American Federation of Government Employees and other unions defended a lower court injunction halting several federal agencies from enforcing an executive order focused on eliminating labor contracts covering agencies that have "national security" aims, arguing the president's directive was retaliatory.

  • August 25, 2025

    Kari Lake Ordered Deposed In Voice Of America Closure Row

    A Washington, D.C., federal judge flirted Monday with finding U.S. Agency for Global Media acting CEO Kari Lake in contempt of an order blocking what workers allege is the dismantling of broadcasting service Voice of America, but instead ordered her and other officials to sit for expedited depositions.

  • August 25, 2025

    Campbell's Says CBA Sorted Out Donning Pay

    Soup producer Campbell's told a New Jersey federal court Monday that a former filler operator failed to mention to the court that a collective bargaining agreement regulated her employment, including whether time spent donning and doffing personal protective equipment was paid.

Expert Analysis

  • NY Bill Would Complicate Labor Law Amid NLRB Uncertainty

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    The New York Legislature passed a bill that, if enacted, would grant state agencies the power to enforce federal labor law, potentially causing significant challenges for employers as they could be subject to both state and federal regulators depending on the National Labor Relations Board's operational status, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Corp. Human Rights Regulatory Landscape Is Fragmented

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    Given the complexity of compliance with nations' overlapping human rights laws, multinational companies need to be cognizant of the evolving approaches to modern slavery transparency, and proposals that could reduce mandatory due diligence and reporting requirements, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

  • Forced Labor Bans Hold Steady Amid Shifts In Global Trade

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    As businesses try to navigate shifting regulatory trends affecting human rights and sustainability, forced labor import bans present a zone of relative stability, notwithstanding outstanding questions about the future of enforcement, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

  • 7 Ways Employers Can Avoid Labor Friction Over AI

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    As artificial intelligence use in the workplace emerges as a key labor relations topic in the U.S. and Europe, employers looking to reduce reputational risk and prevent costly disputes should consider proactive strategies to engage with unions, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

  • Wash. Law Highlights Debate Over Unemployment For Strikers

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    A new Washington state law that will allow strikers to receive unemployment benefits during work stoppages raises questions about whether such laws subsidize disruptions to the economy or whether they are preempted by federal labor law, says Daniel Johns at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Handbook Hot Topics: Shifting Worker Accommodation Rules

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    Since President Donald Trump took office, many changes have directly affected how employers must address accommodation requests, particularly those concerning pregnancy-related medical conditions and religious beliefs, underscoring the importance of regularly reviewing and updating accommodation policies and procedures, say attorneys at Kutak Rock.

  • Water Cooler Talk: Performance Review Tips From 'Severance'

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    In the hit series "Severance," the eerie depiction of performance reviews, which drone on for hours and focus on frivolous issues, can instruct employers about best practices to follow and mistakes to avoid when conducting employee evaluations, say Tracey Diamond and Emily Schifter at Troutman.

  • High Court Order On Board Firings Is Cold Comfort For Fed

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent Trump v. Wilcox order, upholding the firings of two independent agency board members during appeal, raises concerns about the future of removal protections for Federal Reserve System members, and thus the broader politicization of U.S. monetary policy, say attorneys at Squire Patton.

  • SpaceX Labor Suit May Bring Cosmic Jurisdictional Shifts

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    The National Mediation Board's upcoming decision about whether SpaceX falls under the purview of the National Labor Relations Act or the Railway Labor Act could establish how jurisdictional boundaries are determined for employers that toe the line, with tangible consequences for decades to come, say attorneys at Davis Wright.

  • What Employers Should Know About New Wash. WARN Act

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    Washington state's Securing Timely Notification and Benefits for Laid-Off Employees Act will soon require 60 days' notice for certain mass layoffs and business closures, so employers should understand how their obligations differ from those under the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act before implementing layoffs or closings, say attorneys at Littler.

  • Handbook Hot Topics: Relying On FLSA Regs Amid Repeals

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    Because handbook policies often rely on federal regulations, President Donald Trump's recent actions directing agency heads to repeal "facially unlawful regulations" may leave employers wondering what may change, but they should be mindful that even a repealed regulation may have accurately stated the law, say attorneys at Kutak Rock.

  • Deregulation Memo Presents Risks, Opportunities For Cos.

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    A recent Trump administration memo providing direction to agencies tasked with rescinding regulations under an earlier executive order — without undergoing the typical notice-and-review process — will likely create much uncertainty for businesses, though they may be able to engage with agencies to shape the regulatory agenda, say attorneys at Blank Rome.

  • Understanding Compliance Concerns With NY Severance Bill

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    New York's No Severance Ultimatums Act, if enacted, could overhaul how employers manage employee separations, but employers should be mindful that the bill's language introduces ambiguities and raises compliance concerns, say attorneys at Norris McLaughlin.