New Employee Handbook Guidelines Offer Clarity for Businesses
By: Jeff Embleton
The new General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board, appointed by President Donald J. Trump, rolled back controversial handbook rules promulgated under the Obama Board. General Counsel Peter Robb has announced new guidelines on interpretation of handbook policies and rules. These new guidelines overturn a number of controversial decisions under the Obama Board that found facially neutral policies unlawful because of a “possible” chilling effect those rules might have on employees’ rights under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act. The new guidelines give greater clarity to businesses, HR professionals, and legal advisors who are responsible for writing, maintaining and interpreting handbook policies and rules. The Memorandum issued by Robb specifically repudiates the former General Counsel’s attack on employer handbooks which resulted in increased enforcement efforts against businesses for handbook violations. A white paper describing the Memorandum is available here for further review.
