Gag Orders in Old Severance Deals Are Illegal, NLRB Memo Says

The National Labor Relations Board is warning employers that enforcement of past severance agreements with overly broad gag orders will be considered illegal under newly established board precedent.

NLRB General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo said in a Wednesday guidance memo that maintaining or enforcing old severance agreements with broad nondisclosure and nondisparagement agreements would count as a violation of federal labor law under last month’s McLaren Macomb decision.

Abruzzo urged employers to contact workers who might be subject to these agreements and inform them that the gag orders are now voided.

The memo comes in response to widespread confusion in the ...