NLRB issues final rule on joint-employer status

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has issued its final rule expanding the standard for determining joint-employer status under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), replacing the NLRB’s 2020 rule that was issued under Republican control. 

The National Lumber and Building Material Dealers Association (NLBMDA) said the new standard increases the liability of private businesses for violating labor laws and considers two or more companies to be joint employers if either can indirectly control essential terms and conditions of employment such as wages, benefits, other compensation, and work schedules.

If two companies are considered joint employers under the NLRA, both must bargain with the union that represents the jointly employed workers and both are potentially liable for unfair labor practices committed by the other. The effective date of the new rule is Dec. 26, and the new standard will only be applied to cases filed after that date.

The NLRB’s press release announcing the final rule is here, and an NLRB fact sheet on the new rule can be found here. 

The NLBMDA previously submitted comments on the proposed rule that was released in September 2022, and will be submitting formal comments for the final rule on behalf of the LBM industry in opposition to the new joint employer standard.