One of the most controversial rulings by the Obama era National Labor Relations Board appears to be targeted for reversal in the future.
News reports say that President Trump is on the verge of nominating two Republicans to still empty seats on the board, who in combination with the Republican Chairman Philip A. Miscimarra will create a new majority on the five-member body.
One of the first policies expected to be up for review and reversal is the NLRB’s policy adopted in 2011 that allows unions to organize small subsets of workers who make up only a small part of a larger workforce at the same workplace.
These are called micro units, and this policy change was a boon for unions who could use it to invade workplaces where they would be much less likely to be welcomed by a majority of the facility’s workers.
On May 10, the current board majority denied an employer’s request for review of an approval of a unit of an in-plant warehouse only (the unit sought for by the union) and rejection of the employer’s contention that the unit should include the production employees in the same plant as well as those working in its plant across the street.
In his dissent, Miscimarra signaled his intention to re-visit and perhaps reverse the board’s micro-unit decision, which he said was “wrongly decided.”
Miscimarra noted that there was evidence that the employees working in close proximity at the employer’s two plants shared a very common interest in that they all were part of an integrated employer operation.
He went on to note that the micro-unit in the case decided on May 10 was concerning to him because it “promotes insatiability by creating a fractured or fragmented unit.”
On May 24 Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-GA) introduced legislation with 10 Senate sponsors, and Rep. Francis Rooney (R-FL) introduced a companion bill in the House, that would overturn the NLRB microunit decision.