Unprecedented. The Trump NLRB's attack on workers' rights

Introduction

Under the Trump administration, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has systematically rolled back workers’ rights to form unions and engage in collective bargaining with their employers, to the detriment of workers, their communities, and the economy. The Trump board has issued a series of significant decisions weakening worker protections under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA/Act). Further, the board has engaged in an unprecedented number of rulemakings aimed at overturning existing worker protections. Finally, the Trump NLRB general counsel (GC) has advanced policies that leave fewer workers protected by the NLRA and has advocated for changes in the law that roll back workers’ rights.

The Trump board and GC have elevated corporate interests above those of working men and women and have routinely betrayed the statute they are responsible for administering and enforcing. This paper highlights the most egregious actions of the Trump board and GC and evaluates the impact on working people. It is critical that Congress hold the Trump NLRB accountable and that policymakers prioritize legislative reforms that will restore the original promise of our nation’s labor law—to encourage and promote the formation of unions and the practice of collective bargaining.

Background

The NLRA establishes a federally protected right of working people to join together in collective action, whether or not through a union, to improve their working conditions through collective bargaining and other means. The Wagner Act of 1935—the originally enacted version of the NLRA—affirmatively stated its purpose as being to promote and encourage the practice of collective bargaining. Following the Act’s passage, the U.S. experienced decades of faster and fairer economic growth that persisted until the 1970s. But since the 1970s, declining unionization has fueled rising inequality and stalled economic progress for the American middle class.


After decades of decline in the share of workers represented by a union, the American economy is now marked by extreme inequality—the highest ever in U.S. history, according to new Census Bureau data. Chief executive officer (CEO) compensation has grown 940% since 1978, while typical worker compensation has risen only 12% during that time.

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