On August 20, 2011, we published an update regarding the new National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) requirement that all employers who are subject to the jurisdiction of the NLRB must post a notice of employee rights, including the right to unionize, in the workplace. The original due date for the posting was November 14, 2011. However, the NLRB has since announced that it has moved the posting due date to January 31, 2012. Everything else about the requirement stays the same.

Although most private sector employers - regardless of whether they are unionized - will be required to post the notice, there is no need to post it before January 31, 2012. The National Association of Manufacturers and the National Federation of Independent Business have filed lawsuits against the NLRB seeking to enjoin enforcement of the rule on the grounds that it exceeds the NLRB’s statutory authority.

The Department of Labor’s posting obligation as it relates to federal contractors, under Executive Order 13496 for federal contractors to post notices of employees’ NLRA rights, went into effect on June 21, 2010, and is not being challenged.

Also, according to the NLRB rule, a federal contractor who has complied with the Department of Labor’s notice posting requirement will be deemed in compliance with the NLRB’s notice posting requirement.

Copies of the poster and requirements are now available for downloading and printing on the NLRB website.