The Board's General Counsel Memorandum Is A Comforting Return To A Common Sense Approach To Workplace Policies

Seyfarth Synopsis: On June 6, 2018, Peter. B. Robb, General Counsel for the National Labor Relations Board ("Board"), provided employers with the first substantive guidance regarding workplace policies since the Board's Boeing decision. General Counsel Memorandum 18-04 is a victory for employers as the Board seems to be returning to a common sense approach when evaluating workplace policies concerning on the job conduct, confidentiality, defamation, intellectual property, among other things.

Under Boeing, the Board established a new standard focused on the balance between an employees' ability to exercise their Section 7 rights and the employers' right to maintain discipline and productivity in the workplace. The Board broke down workplace policies into three categories:

Category 1 – Rules that do not prohibit or interfere with the exercise of protected rights, or the potential adverse impact on protected rights is outweighed by justifications associated with the rule. Category 2- Rules that the warrant individual scrutiny on a case-by-case basis and whether any adverse impact on protected conduct is outweighed by legitimate justifications. Category 3 – Rules that that the Board will designate as unlawful to maintain because they would prohibit or limit protected conduct, and the adverse impact on Section 7 rights is not outweighed by justifications associated with the rule. ( https://www.employerlaborrelations.com/2017/12/19/the-boards-return-to-civility-and-common-sense-regarding-workplace-rules/) This latest memorandum adds guidance to the three categories set out in Boeing.

Category 1 Policies that are Lawful to Maintain

Civility rules – Rules that require courteousness in the workplace, that prohibit rude or unbusinesslike behavior and that prohibit an employee from disparaging another employee. These types of rules advance substantial employee and employer interests, including an employer's responsibility to maintain a workplace free of harassment and violence. No photography/no recording rules – Rules that prohibit photography in the workplace and that forbid recording conversations, meetings and phone calls with co-workers, supervisors, and third parties unless such recordings are approved by the Company. These type of rules advance an employer's interest in limiting recording and photography on Company property. Be advised however, employers still must ensure that a no recording policy passes legal muster under applicable state...

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