While not every employee involvement committee formed by an employer will be considered to be a labor organization as defined by the NLRA, employers should be cautious when forming such employee involvement groups. The definition of a labor organization as defined by the NLRA is any organization, agency, or employee representation committee or plan in which employees participate and that exists for the purpose, in whole or in part, of "dealing with employers concerning grievances, labor disputes, wages, rates of pay, hours of employment, or conditions of work." The NLRB will then evaluate the amount of employer domination and support given to the committee so it can determine if the employer is superseding any of the functions of a union and, therefore, is engaging in unfair labor practices. Three notable court cases have addressed this issue beginning in 1988 and the last in 2001.

As lessons learned from these three cases, employers can find guidelines that they can follow when forming employee participation committees. First, they should make sure that issues typically discussed at the collective bargaining table are not topics addressed by employee committees. Second, management should not have a majority of the members nor dominate the committee.

Safe issues for employee committees to address include social and athletic activities. Those topics are not typically viewed as mandatory bargaining subjects. There have been other instances where committees have addressed various other subjects with varying committee structures, and those instances have not been viewed as violations of the NLRA. The safest route when contemplating the formation of such employee involvement committees is to discuss the company’s plan of action with a knowledgeable labor attorney and ask for a review of current NRLA law. 

[Editor's Note: See law firm summary of guidelines for participative management initiatives

Please Note: This material is provided as general information and is not a substitute for legal or other professional advice. Contact the Knowledge Center for more information.

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