NLRB general counsel says mandatory anti-union meetings are illegal

Jennifer Abruzzo, general counsel for the National Labor Relations Board, yesterday issued a memorandum that the widespread practice by employers to mandate workers attend anti-union meetings is illegal under federal law. “This license to coerce is an anomaly in labor law, inconsistent with the act’s protection of employees’ free choice,” Ms. Abruzzo said in a statement. “I believe that the N.L.R.B. case precedent, which has tolerated such meetings, is at odds with fundamental labor-law principles, our statutory language and our congressional mandate.”