Summary of NLRB Decisions for Week of December 27 - 30 2022
The Summary of NLRB Decisions is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended to substitute for the opinions of the NLRB. Inquiries should be directed to the Office of the Executive Secretary at 202‑273‑1940.
Summarized Board Decisions
Metro Man IV, LLC d/b/a Fountain Bleu Health and Rehabilitation Center, Inc. (07-CA-264407; 372 NLRB No. 37) Livonia, MI, December 28, 2022.
The Board unanimously reversed the Administrative Law Judge’s conclusions that the Respondent violated Section 8(a)(5) and (1) when it unilaterally increased wages and used non-unit employees to perform bargaining unit work in response to conditions created by the COVID-19 pandemic in the Respondent’s nursing home that presented an extraordinary and unforeseen imminent threat to human life that required the Respondent to take immediate action. A Board majority (Members Wilcox and Prouty) found that once the Respondent had decided upon and implemented these measures, it was obliged to promptly notify the Union of the decisions it had taken and to offer to bargain about those decisions and their effects, and that it violated Section 8(a)(5) and (1) by failing to do so. Members Wilcox and Prouty also affirmed the judge’s conclusion that the Respondent violated Section 8(a)(5) and (1) by subsequently unilaterally reducing wages. Finally, Members Wilcox and Prouty amended the judge’s recommended remedy to require the Respondent to rescind the wage reduction, restore the status quo ante, and make employees whole for any loss of earnings and other benefits, including any direct or foreseeable pecuniary harms incurred as a result of its unlawful conduct. Member Kaplan, dissenting in part, found that the Respondent made one decision with respect to wages—to temporarily raise them until the facility no longer housed COVID-positive patients—and that it was excused from bargaining about this decision and its effects both before and after implementation. Member Kaplan also found that the Respondent was excused from bargaining about its decision to use non-unit employees to perform unit work, but that it violated Section 8(a)(5) and (1) by failing to bargain about the effects of that decision.
Charge filed by SEIU Healthcare Michigan. Administrative Law Judge Ira Sandron issued his decision on August 31, 2021. Members Kaplan, Wilcox, and Prouty participated.
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Unpublished Board Decisions in Representation and Unfair Labor Practice Cases
R Cases
No Unpublished R Cases Issued.
C Cases
No Unpublished C Cases Issued.
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Appellate Court Decisions
No Appellate Court Decisions involving Board Decisions to report.
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Administrative Law Judge Decisions
Stephens Media Group – Massena, LLC (03-CA-290582; JD-76-22) Massena, NY. Administrative Law Judge Charles J. Muhl issued his decision on December 27, 2022. Charge filed by National Association of Broadcast Employees & Technicians – Communications Workers of America, AFL-CIO.
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