Source: National Labor Relations Board
Private-sector employers must notify employees of their rights under the National Labor Relations Act by November 14, a deadline marking 75 days after the NLRB published a related rule in the Federal Register.
Employers bound by the National Labor Relations Act will be required to post the employee rights notice alongside other posters federal and state agencies typically mandate for workplaces. Employers who customarily post notices to employees regarding personnel rules or policies on an internet or intranet site will be required to post the Board’s notice on those sites.
Copies of the notice will be available from the Agency’s regional offices or for download from www.nlrb.gov. Similar to one required by the U.S. Department of Labor for federal contractors, the new notice states that employees have the right to act together to improve wages and working conditions, to form, join and assist a union, to bargain collectively with their employer, and to refrain from any of these activities. It provides examples of unlawful employer and union conduct, and instructs employees how to contact the NLRB with questions or complaints.
The Board received approximately 6,500 comments during a 60-day comment period following publication of its Proposed Rule in the Federal Register, and accepted an additional 500 post-deadline comments. In response, some parts of the rule were modified. For example, employers will not be required to distribute the notice via email, voice mail, text messaging or related electronic communications even if they customarily communicate with their employees in that manner, and they may post notices in black and white as well as in color. The final rule also clarifies requirements for posting in foreign languages.