The National Labor Relations Board said Tuesday that it remains committed to seeking federal court orders meant to protect the jobs of workers during union organizing campaigns.
The announcement, by NLRB General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo in a memorandum to all field offices, comes in the wake of the Supreme Court’s June 11 decision in Starbucks Corp. v. McKinney, which set a uniform four-part test applicable to all so-called Section 10(j) injunction petitions.
“The use of 10(j) injunctions has been a key component of the board’s strategy during GC Abruzzo’s tenure (as reported here) and, notwithstanding this significant blow, GC Abruzzo presses forward,” attorneys Joshua S. Fox and Tony S. Martinez, both of Proskauer Rose, wrote in an article for the National Law Review.
The Starbucks case stemmed from the 2022 employment termination by Starbucks of seven workers who were trying to unionize their workplace. The NLRB obtained a 10(j) injunction, which required Starbucks to reinstate the workers while the NLRB considered their case. The Supreme Court decision was seen as a victory for employers that don’t support worker efforts to unionize.
According to Abruzzo, Section 10(j) of the National Labor Relations Act authorizes the NLRB to seek injunctions against employers and unions in federal district courts to stop unfair labor practices and ensure that employees’ rights will be adequately protected from remedial failure due to the passage of time.
“Effective enforcement of our statute requires that we timely protect employees’ Section 7 rights to engage in union and protected concerted activities free from retaliation,” Abruzzo stated. “Thus, it remains my intention to aggressively seek Section 10(j) injunctions where necessary to preserve the status quo and efficacy of Board final orders. And, I have no doubt that the regions will continue to be successful in obtaining injunctive relief at around the same rate.”
Additionally, Abruzzo announced an initiative to seek injunctions in certain cases where workers have been subject to threats or other coercive conduct during an organizing campaign, and she issued a memorandum about settlement agreements providing for interim relief pending adjudication.
