On July 19, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) filed a motion with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit seeking dismissal of its appeal of a lower court decision that struck down the Board’s October 2023 joint employer final rule. The rule in question would have established a new and broader standard for determining whether separate entities are considered “joint employers” under the National Labor Relations Act, but a Texas federal court invalidated the rule in March. The NLRB appealed that decision in May, but has now decided to drop the appeal, ending its efforts to revive the rule. The result is that the 2023 rule will not take effect, and a less restrictive rule established in 2020, which the 2023 rule would have rescinded, remains the operative joint employer regulation.
LeadingAge opposed the 2023 rule, and this is viewed as a positive development. This may not be the final chapter in the story, however, as the NLRB potentially will initiate a new rulemaking process seeking to rescind the 2020 rule, without proposing a new rule to replace it. As reported by Bloomberg news, in June the AFL-CIO and SEIU urged NLRB to take this approach. LeadingAge will continue to monitor this issue and will share news of developments as they occur.
