Bob is fascinated by the balance between the need for regulation and the vast growth of the administrative state. We are also fascinated by just how much the political winds impact the law…even though we like to believe it is solid and hard to change. Look no further than the 88-year-old National Labor Relations Act, and the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) which it created. It is now under fire at the Supreme Court.
A product of the New Deal, the NLRB has yet to face such a challenge in the modern era, but major companies like SpaceX, Starbucks, and Trader Joe's have marshaled a constitutional challenge to the legitimacy of its composition and enforcement activities, hoping to eventually find a sympathetic ear before the U.S. Supreme Court, currently controlled by a conservative majority.
These arguments range from challenges to the board's impartiality to issues concerning the separation of powers doctrine, given the inability to remove board members except “for cause,” to violations of due process and deprivation of the right to trial by jury under the Fifth and Seventh Amendments, respectively. And given the Biden NLRB's aggressive policy and enforcement prerogatives, these arguments have begun to become commonplace defenses against its actions.
John Balitis knows the NLRB. He knows what it is like to “walk in” and face an administrative investigation/prosecution/enforcement/judicial and appellate body…ALL IN ONE!
His prediction? Somehow the board…which impacts virtually every workplace…is likely going to be a different animal once the Supreme Court rules. How different? What does it mean for employers? Employees?
Take a listen now!
