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Labor relations counsel for employers facing union organizing, collective bargaining, grievance arbitration, and unfair labor practice charges under the National Labor Relations Act.

Union activity puts your management decisions under a legal microscope, and a single misstep by a supervisor can trigger an unfair labor practice charge. We advise employers on the full arc of labor relations, from a first organizing drive through bargaining, grievances, and arbitration, so you respond within the rules and keep control of your workforce strategy.

Responding to Organizing

When a union begins organizing your workforce, what your supervisors say and do becomes evidence. We train your managers on what the NLRA permits and prohibits, help you craft lawful communications to employees, and represent you through petitions and representation elections before the National Labor Relations Board. The goal is a clean, defensible campaign that withstands later scrutiny.

Collective Bargaining

Negotiating a contract is where labor strategy meets your bottom line. We prepare bargaining positions, advise on the duty to bargain in good faith, and help you weigh proposals on wages, benefits, work rules, and management rights. Whether you are bargaining a first agreement or renewing one, we keep your operational flexibility in view at the table.

Grievances and ULP Charges

Contract disputes and board charges are part of life with a union. We handle grievances through the contractual steps and into arbitration, and we defend unfair labor practice charges before the NLRB. We also read the contract language and arbitration decisions back into your day-to-day practices so the same disputes do not keep resurfacing.

Frequently asked questions

You can share your honest view on unionizing, but you can't threaten, interrogate, promise benefits to discourage support, or surveil union activity. (The shorthand is TIPS: no Threats, Interrogation, Promises, or Surveillance.) You also have to let employees organize during non-work time in non-work areas.

It's the process of negotiating the terms and conditions of employment with the union that represents your workers. You're required to bargain over mandatory subjects: wages, hours, benefits, and working conditions. Permissive subjects can be raised, but you don't have to bargain them to impasse.

It's usually the last step in the dispute process under a collective bargaining agreement: a neutral arbitrator decides disputes about how the contract should be interpreted and applied. The decision is generally binding, and courts will only review it on narrow grounds.

An unfair labor practice (ULP) is a violation of the National Labor Relations Act by an employer or a union. For employers, that includes interfering with organizing rights, retaliating against union supporters, and refusing to bargain in good faith. Charges are filed with the NLRB, which investigates and can prosecute them.

Know what your collective bargaining agreement requires and train your supervisors to administer it, since most ULP charges come from a frontline manager who didn't know the rule. Keep discipline consistent, communicate through the proper channels, process grievances promptly, and treat union reps as people you'll work with for years.

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