Unions face increased exposure for DFR charges

The NLRB General Counsel issued a memorandum directing the Board’s enforcement personnel to be more aggressive in prosecuting charges against unions under the National Labor Relations Act sec. 8(b)(1)(A), which imposes a Duty of Fair Representation (“DFR”) on unions. Under Sec. 8(b)(1)(A), workers who are represented by a union may file a DFR charge alleging that the union failed to represent them adequately. To prove a DFR violation, the worker must show the failure to represent was arbitrary, discriminatory or in bad faith. Historically, union have been able to assert, as a defense, that their failure was “mere negligence.”

The NLRB General Counsel’s memo keeps in place the “mere negligence” defense but offers a tighter definition for what does and does not constitute “mere negligence.” The memo orders NLRB staff to now follow this tighter definition.

Under the tighter definition, unions face increased exposure for DFR charges. What was once “mere negligence” will no longer be tolerated by the Board.

The memo provides two specific examples:

  1. “(H)aving lost track, misplaced or otherwise forgotten about
    a grievance, whether or not (the union) had committed to pursue it,” will no longer be considered “mere negligence,” unless the union proves it did so in spite of its previously established and routinely used should be required procedural systems to process such concerns (i.e., despite proof of the prior “existence of established, reasonable procedures or systems in place to track grievances”).
  2. “(A) union’s failure to communicate decisions related to a grievance or to
    respond to inquiries for information or documents by the charging party” will generally not be considered “mere negligence.” “Regions issuing a complaint in these cases should argue that a union’s failure to return phone calls or emails or other efforts by the charging party to inquire about a grievance or attempt to file one, constitutes” a DFR violation.

inconsistent with the way the Board and Regional Directors have historically interpreted duty of fair representation law. Going forward, Regions are directed to apply the above principles to Section 8(b)(1)(A) duty affair representation cases, issue a complaint where appropriate, and make arguments consistent with those set out above.

Source: NLRB General Counsel Memorandum ICG 18-09 (9/14/18).