| Summary: | Issues addressed in this paper concern the integrity of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and its adjudication of charges of unfair labor practices regarding the relocation of work. After reviewing a variety of criticisms of the Board, the paper concentrates upon the adjudicative integrity of the NLRB. Three dilemmas are identified, relating to the substantive goals of national labor legislation, interpretation, and adjudicative practice. These dilemmas are argued to be both the source of many criticisms of the Board's integrity and a source of the litigation explosion. Even so, the Board remains a vital institution in American collective bargaining with significant impacts on the structure of the economic landscape. A case study is used to explore these issues; specifically charges brought by Local 989 of the United Auto Workers union against Otis Elevator company for its failure to bargain over the relocation of work from one plant to another.
|
|---|