NLRB Wishlist: Prosecute Employers' English-Only Policies, Extend Weingarten & More…

In less than a year, the Obama Administration’s control of the National Labor Relations Board is coming to an end.

With a new President will come new appointees and, though highly unlikely, a new direction.
As a result, the outgoing NLRB General Counsel (and former general counsel of the IUOE) Richard Griffin has sent out a “wish list” (an Advice Memorandum to all NLRB offices) of the types of cases (employer policies or actions) he would like to see the NLRB prosecute in the coming months.

Below is the list in its entirety, but of particular note are these items:

1. Companies’ use of Permanent Replacement workers—The General Counsel wants cases where employers use permanent replacement workers for “unlawful motives.”
2. Companies’ English-Only policies—As has been the trend in recent years, the NLRB views companies’ “English-Only” policies has being restrictive on employees’ right to engage in concerted activity and it appears the NLRB wants to expand its doctrine of anything goes in the workplace.
3. Weingarten Rights Principle—As was the case in the waning days of the Clinton administration, the NLRB appears to want to extend “Weingarten Rights”–that is the allowance of representation during investigatory interviews–to union-free workplaces again

There is much more, but you can view the entire wish list in the document below.

NLRB General Counsel's Wish List of Cases To Try