The top lawyer for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is ordering her subordinates to continue to seek injunctions against employers for alleged violations of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), despite the Supreme Court seemingly making it more difficult to obtain an injunction to enjoin an unfair labor practice.

Section 10(j) of the NLRA permits the NLRB to seek temporary injunctions against employers and unions in federal courts to enjoin allegedly unfair labor practices while the case is being litigated before the NLRB. As we recently wrote, in Starbucks Corp. v McKinney, the Supreme Court ruled that the standard for issuing a Section 10(j) injunction was a four-part test applied traditionally when a party seeks an injunction instead of a two-part test applied in labor cases.

Not to be deterred, in a July 16, 2024, memorandum, NLRB General Counsel Jennifer A. Abruzzo instructed NLRB regional directors and other senior staff to continue to pursue injunctive relief against employers despite the Supreme Court’s ruling.

“It remains my intention to aggressively seek Section 10(j) injunctions where necessary to preserve the status quo and efficacy of Board final orders.”

Abruzzo wrote that adoption of the uniform standard in the Starbucks case for injunctions under the NLRA “will not have a significant impact on the Agency’s Section 10(j) program as the Agency has ample experience litigating Section 10(j) injunctions under that standard.”

Takeaways

Although the NLRB’s burden in seeking an injunction has seemingly increased, the NLRB plans on continuing to seek injunctive relief under the NLRA.

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