29 CFR 102 - RULES AND REGULATIONS, SERIES 8

The National Labor Relations Board (the Board or the NLRB) is revising its rules governing the processing of representation cases during periods when the Board lacks a quorum of Members. This revision is being adopted to facilitate, insofar as it is possible, the normal functioning of the Agency when the number of Board Members falls below three, the number required to establish a quorum of the Board. See 29 U.S.C. 153(b); New Process Steel v. NLRB, 130 S.Ct. 2635 (2010). The effect of the revision is to enable the Agency to process some representation cases to the certification of a representative or the certification of the results of the election, while deferring Board consideration of parties' requests for review until a quorum has been restored.

On June 22, 2011, the National Labor Relations Board (the Board) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking proposing various amendments of its rules and regulations governing the filing and processing of petitions relating to the representation of employees for purposes of collective bargaining with their employer. This document explains which of the proposed amendments the Board is adopting at this time in the final rule and sets forth the Board's responses to comments concerning those proposals. The Board believes that the final rule will reduce unnecessary litigation in representation cases and thereby enable the Board to better fulfill its duty to expeditiously resolve questions concerning representation. The final rule will also save time and resources for the parties and the agency. The final rule will focus pre-election hearings on those issues relevant to determining if there is a question concerning representation, provide for pre-election briefing only when it will assist the decision makers, reduce piecemeal appeals to the Board, consolidate requests for Board review of regional directors' pre- and post-election determinations into a single, post-election request, make Board review of post-election regional determinations discretionary, and eliminate duplicative regulations. The final rule will allow the Board to more promptly determine if there is a question concerning representation and, if so, to resolve it by conducting a secret-ballot election and certifying the results.

The National Labor Relations Board is revising its rules governing the consideration of certain pleadings that ordinarily require action by a quorum of at least three Board Members. The revisions are being adopted to facilitate, insofar as it is possible, the normal functioning of the Agency during periods when the number of Board members falls below three, the number required to establish a quorum of the Board. The effect of the revisions is to provide the public with avenues for resolving certain issues, while deferring full review by the Board until a quorum has been restored.

The National Labor Relations Board (the Board or the NLRB) is revising its rules governing the processing of representation cases during periods when the Board lacks a quorum of Members. This revision is being adopted to facilitate, insofar as it is possible, the normal functioning of the Agency when the number of Board Members falls below three, the number required to establish a quorum of the Board. See 29 U.S.C. 153(b); New Process Steel v. NLRB, 130 S.Ct. 2635 (2010). The effect of the revision is to enable the Agency to process some representation cases to the certification of a representative or the certification of the results of the election, while deferring Board consideration of parties' requests for review until a quorum has been restored.

On June 22, 2011, the National Labor Relations Board (the Board) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking proposing various amendments of its rules and regulations governing the filing and processing of petitions relating to the representation of employees for purposes of collective bargaining with their employer. This document explains which of the proposed amendments the Board is adopting at this time in the final rule and sets forth the Board's responses to comments concerning those proposals. The Board believes that the final rule will reduce unnecessary litigation in representation cases and thereby enable the Board to better fulfill its duty to expeditiously resolve questions concerning representation. The final rule will also save time and resources for the parties and the agency. The final rule will focus pre-election hearings on those issues relevant to determining if there is a question concerning representation, provide for pre-election briefing only when it will assist the decision makers, reduce piecemeal appeals to the Board, consolidate requests for Board review of regional directors' pre- and post-election determinations into a single, post-election request, make Board review of post-election regional determinations discretionary, and eliminate duplicative regulations. The final rule will allow the Board to more promptly determine if there is a question concerning representation and, if so, to resolve it by conducting a secret-ballot election and certifying the results.

The National Labor Relations Board is revising its rules governing the consideration of certain pleadings that ordinarily require action by a quorum of at least three Board Members. The revisions are being adopted to facilitate, insofar as it is possible, the normal functioning of the Agency during periods when the number of Board members falls below three, the number required to establish a quorum of the Board. The effect of the revisions is to provide the public with avenues for resolving certain issues, while deferring full review by the Board until a quorum has been restored.

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) invites interested parties to attend an open meeting of the Board on November 30, 2011, at 2:30 p.m. The meeting will be held in the Board Agenda Room (Room 11820), National Labor Relations Board, 1099 14th Street NW., Washington, DC 20570. The purpose of the meeting will be to vote on how to proceed in this rulemaking proceeding. No public testimony or comments will be received.

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) invites interested parties to attend an open meeting with the Board and its staff on July 18, 2011. The Board meeting will be held from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. The meeting will be held in the Margaret A. Browning Hearing Room (Room 11000), National Labor Relations Board, 1099 14th Street, NW., Washington, DC 20570. During the public meeting, interested persons may share their views on the proposed amendments to the Board's rules governing representation case procedures, published at 76 FR 15307 (June 22, 2011) and make other proposals for improving representation case procedures.

As part of its ongoing efforts to more effectively administer the National Labor Relations Act (the Act or the NLRA) and to further the purposes of the Act, the National Labor Relations Board (the Board) proposes to amend its rules and regulations governing the filing and processing of petitions relating to the representation of employees for purposes of collective bargaining with their employer. The Board believes that the proposed amendments would remove unnecessary barriers to the fair and expeditious resolution of questions concerning representation. The proposed amendments would simplify representation-case procedures and render them more transparent and uniform across regions, eliminate unnecessary litigation, and consolidate requests for Board review of regional directors' pre- and post-election determinations into a single, post-election request. The proposed amendments would allow the Board to more promptly determine if there is a question concerning representation and, if so, to resolve it by conducting a secret ballot election.