NLRB's New Posting Requirement

The NLRB issued a press release today, announcing a final rule that will "require employers to notify employees of their rights under the National Labor Relations Act." If you're really curious, you can read the full 194-page final rule here. If you're a little lazier, the NLRB issued a fact sheet with some Q&A. If you're even lazier than that, here are some highlights:

• Who: "[N]early all private-sector employers subject to the National Labor Relations Act" (aka almost everyone), including non-union workplaces. There's also an exception for really small businesses "whose annual volume of business is not large enough to have a more than a slight effect on interstate commerce."
• What: You can get copies of the official notice from the NLRB's regional offices on or before November 1, 2011. Or you can print it out from the Board's website "on one 11-by-17-inch paper or two 8-by-11-inch papers taped together."
• When: Effective November 14, 2011.
• Where: The rule requires a physical posting and "on an internet or intranet site if personnel rules and policies are customarily posted there."
• Why: "Failure to post the notice may be treated as an unfair labor practice under the National Labor Relations Act." You don't want that.

Image: Public Domain work of federal government. Used in commentary on NLRB, not an official use.

Posted by Philip Miles, an attorney with McQuaide Blasko in State College, Pennsylvania in the firm's civil litigation and labor and employment law practice groups.