Last week, while I was out on vacation, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce released an interesting report analyzing all of the NLRB’s actions in cases involving social media. You can read the report here.
The report confirms something that I’ve commented on before — that many of the cases are (or were handled) at the preliminary stages and there hasn’t been much solid for employers to go on.
The survey:
indicates that the NLRB has reviewed more than 129 cases involving social media in some way. While most of these cases are at the very initial stage, and may not be meritorious at all, some are more advanced. At least two Board decisions have social media components, as do another two decisions by administrative law judges. There are at least seven settlement agreements involving social media cases and the Board’s General Counsel has issued complaints in an additional four cases. The General Counsel has also issued ten memoranda involving social media, eight of which are opinions from the Division of Advice.
The most common issue? Overbroad policies, an item I noted back in April.
Overall, the report is worth a read, if to just have a firmer understanding of the positions that the NLRB is (or is not) taking in these cases.