NLRB General Counsel Reaffirms Commitment to Seeking Injunctions to Protect Workers’ Rights

In a new memorandum to all field offices released today, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo reaffirmed her commitment to seeking Section 10(j) injunctions after the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Starbucks Corp. v. McKinney, which set a uniform four-part test applicable to all Section 10(j) injunction petitions.

Section 10(j) of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) authorizes the NLRB to seek injunctions against employers and unions in federal district courts to stop unfair labor practices and ensure that employees’ rights will be adequately protected from remedial failure due to the passage of time.

General Counsel Abruzzo explained that, while the Supreme Court’s decision in Starbucks Corp. provides a uniform standard to be applied in all Section 10(j) injunctions nationwide, adoption of this standard will not have a significant impact on the Agency’s Section 10(j) program as the Agency has ample experience litigating injunctions under that standard and has a high rate of success in obtaining injunctions under the four-part test —a success rate equivalent to or higher than the success rate in circuit courts that applied the two-part test.

“Effective enforcement of our statute requires that we timely protect employees’ Section 7 rights to engage in union and protected concerted activities free from retaliation,” said General Counsel Abruzzo. “Thus, it remains my intention to aggressively seek Section 10(j) injunctions where necessary to preserve the status quo and efficacy of Board final orders. And, I have no doubt that the Regions will continue to be successful in obtaining injunctive relief at around the same rate.”

General Counsel Abruzzo previously released a memorandum underscoring the importance of 10(j) injunction proceedings and affirming the Agency’s priority in continuing efforts to obtain immediate relief in cases that present a significant risk of remedial failure. She also announced an initiative to seek injunctions in certain cases where workers have been subject to threats or other coercive conduct during an organizing campaign, as well as a memorandum about settlement agreements providing for interim relief pending adjudication.