Labor Board Dials Back Employer Latitude to Change Job Terms (1)

The National Labor Relations Board overturned a precedent from the first Trump administration that gave employers more leeway to make changes to job requirements and working conditions without bargaining with a union.

The NLRB’s Democratic majority Tuesday struck down the 2019 decision in MV Transportation, which adopted the “contract coverage” standard. Under that test, the plain language of a labor deal determined whether an employer could make unilateral changes to particular workplace terms.

Instead, the board returned to its longstanding “clear and unmistakable waiver” standard, which only allows unilateral changes when a union specifically waived its right to bargain ...