On June 10, 2026, the AFL-CIO filed suit against the Department of Labor (“DOL”) in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (AFL-CIO v. Sonderling, No. 1:26-cv-02061 (D.D.C.)), challenging a final rule that imposes “sweeping changes” to the financial reporting obligations of labor organizations under the
Faster is Not Always Better: House Passes Bill Seeking Radical Change in First Contract Bargaining
In a surprise move, on June 9, 2026, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Faster Labor Contracts Act (“FLCA”) by a vote of 230-193, sending the bill to the Senate. The legislation—passed without Republican leadership support and via a discharge petition—seeks a dramatic restructuring of the National Labor Relations…
Cemex Status Quo: Ninth Circuit Declines to Address NLRB’s Cemex Standard
On April 21, 2026, in Cemex Construction Materials Pacific, LLC v. National Labor Relations Board, Case No. 23-2302 (9th Cir.), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit declined to evaluate the new union-organizing standard adopted by the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or the “Board”) in Cemex…
Trump’s Latest NLRB Pick Could Swing Biden-Era Precedent
By Joshua Fox, Daniel H. Dorson & Connor Riser on
On April 13, 2026, President Trump nominated James Macy to fill the third vacant Republican seat on the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or the “Board”). The President also re-nominated current Democrat NLRB Member David Prouty to serve a second term. The dual split-party nominations—a common political maneuver—may facilitate a…
Cemex Survives: Board Declines Chance to Overturn Novel Representation Framework
On March 25, 2026, the National Labor Relations Board issued a decision in St. John’s College, Case 28-RM-337949, and declined to overturn the Board’s August 2023 decision in Cemex Construction Materials Pacific, LLC, 372 NLRB No. 130 (2023). Cemex upended 50 years of precedent by establishing a…
Course Change: NLRB Asks Federal Court to Strike Removal Protections
By Joshua Fox, Yonatan Grossman-Boder & Rose Farkish on
On March 23, 2026, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) asked a federal court to declare unconstitutional and sever the provisions in the National Labor Relations Act (the “Act”) that restrict the President’s ability to remove NLRB Board Members and administrative law judges (“ALJs”). The filing comes in the case…
NIH Withdraws Recognition from Union Representing Grad Students and Postdocs
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has withdrawn recognition from the union representing its postdoctoral and graduate student fellows. In the email announcing the decision, the NIH stated it withdrew recognition because the fellows are not “employees.” Unionization at federal agencies like the NIH is regulated by the Federal Labor…