Political Parties Fair Game for NLRB Cases, Agency Lawyer Says

The National Labor Relations Board can assert jurisdiction over political parties without interfering with their First Amendment rights, an agency lawyer said in a case involving the Missouri affiliate of the Democratic Party.

NLRB jurisdiction won’t infringe on any employer’s control over its constitutionally protected speech, the head of the NLRB’s advice division said in a memo made public Wednesday. The board asserted jurisdiction over the Kansas AFL-CIO, a political organization, over its First Amendment arguments in a 2004 ruling.

“While there may be organizational differences between a political action nonprofit like the Kansas AFL-CIO and a political party, ...