NLRB, U.S. DOJ Will Partner On New Workers’ Rights Initiative

On July 26, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced they have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to “strengthen the agencies’ partnership through greater coordination in information sharing, coordinated investigations and enforcement activity, training, education, and outreach.”

The two agencies will train staff to identify cases and issues that may arise under the other agency’s jurisdiction, engage in outreach and public education, share or co-develop training materials and programs, and develop joint policy statements and technical assistance documents.

The NLRB and DOJ also plan to “establish procedures for consulting and coordinating various stages of their respective investigative and enforcement activities” and will refer cases to each other as appropriate.

In a statement, the NRLB said the agencies’ collaboration will focus on protecting workers who have been harmed or may be at risk of being harmed as a result of conduct designed to evade legal obligation and accountability, such as misclassifying employees or fissuring workplaces); interference with the rights of workers to obtain fair market compensation and collectively bargain through labor market concentration/labor monopsony or other anticompetitive practices; and the imposition of restrictive agreements or workplace rules, such as noncompete, nonsolicitation, and nondisclosure provisions.