Can an employer's "at will" statement and handbook acknowledgement form violate the NLRA? One administrative law judge has ruled it can. In American Red Cross Arizona Blood Services Region, Case No. 28-CA-23443 downloadable here (February 1, 2012) the ALJ found an Employers acknowledgement form, which employees are required to sign, and which states “I further agree that the at-will employment relationship cannot be amended, modified or altered in any way” violated the Act by maintaining and requiring employees to sign an acknowledgement form which is overly-broad and discriminatory. It is reasonable to expect the current NLRB to affirm this decision. If so, a whole lot of employers will be changing their at-will language. ALJ's money quote after the jump.
As counsel for the General Counsel correctly points out in her post-hearing brief, the signing of the acknowledgement form is essentially a waiver in which an employee agrees that his/her at-will status cannot change, thereby relinquishing his/her right to advocate concertedly whether represented by a union or not, to change his/her at-will status. For all practical purposes, the clause in question premises employment on an employee’s agreement not to enter into any contract, to make any efforts, or to engage in conduct that could result in union representation and in a collective-bargaining agreement, which would amend, modify, or alter the at-will relationship. Clearly such a clause would reasonably chill employees who were interested in exercising their Section 7 rights. Opinion pp. 20-21.
