NLRB Focuses on "At Will" Disclaimers in Employer Documents

NLRB Focuses on "At Will" Disclaimers in Employer Document

By Neil L. Wojtal

The NLRB, through several decisions and based upon remarks made by Acting General Counsel Lafe Solomon, will be focusing on at-will disclaimers noting that blanket at-will statements may violate the National Labor Relations Act.

The basis for the possible violation is that a statement signed by an employee which states that the at-will disclaimer cannot be changed under any circumstances has a chilling effect on labor organizing efforts because it leads the employee to believe that the employee's at-will status cannot be changed through collective bargaining.

I am attaching a link to an article which explains the reasoning behind the possible violation and which includes some steps which an employer can take to protect its at-will status. The best protective measure is to make sure your at-will language does not provide that the nature of the at-will relationship cannot be changed under any circumstances.

Here is the link:

http://www.ebglaw.com/showclientadvisory.aspx?Show=16386#page=1

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