Labor Board Adds Teeth With New Consequential Damages Remedy (1)

Employers that violate federal labor law will face having to pay workers for the consequences of their unfair labor practices, thanks to a National Labor Relations Board precedential decision.

The NLRB ruled 3-2 on Tuesday to add consequential damages to its traditional make-whole remedies like back pay and reinstatement.

“‘Make-whole relief’ is more fully realized when it consistently compensates affected employees for all direct or foreseeable pecuniary harms that result from a respondent’s unfair labor practice,” the board said in its ruling.

The new remedy could cover things like medical expenses that workers had to pay out of pocket because ...