Legislative lowdown: House lawmakers vote to kill joint-employer rule

On Jan. 12, the House of Representatives voted to overturn the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) joint-employer rule.

The final rule, which would make it easier for two businesses to qualify as joint employers of a group of employees, is currently set to take effect Feb. 26. It’s been the target of lawsuits from pro-business groups and opposition by mostly Republican lawmakers, some of whom argue the policy would threaten the way some employers—particularly franchise owners—conduct business.

If two businesses qualify as a joint employer, “they are then legally liable for one another’s actions—including unfair labor practices—and must bargain with unions representing workers they oversee,” HR Brew previously reported. “The rule could open up a pathway for more workers to unionize at big companies like McDonald’s or Amazon….given these firms might be required to negotiate with workers employed by independent contractors or franchisees,” HR Brew reported in another story.

“Under the new joint employer rule, small business owners are going to be compelled to acquiesce to more big government regulation and union boss control,” Rep. Virginia Foxx, a Republican from North Carolina and chairwoman of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, said ahead of the House vote to strike down the NLRB rule.

Though most House Democrats expressed support for the joint-employer rule, it has a key opponent in the Senate: Joe Manchin of West Virginia. President Joe Biden has said he will veto the resolution to overturn the rule if it gets to his desk.

A busy spring. Lawmakers introduced the resolution to kill the joint-employer rule under the Congressional Review Act (CRA), which is sometimes used by Congress to overturn final rules issued by federal agencies. The CRA “is most frequently used during a change in administration or when there is a shift in majority control,” according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

It’s likely the Biden administration will aim to finalize additional proposed rules this spring in order to avoid further CRA challenges should the White House—or either chamber of Congress—change party hands next January following the presidential election in November, Heather MacDougall, a partner at law firm Morgan Lewis, told HR Brew in December.

Among rules that have been proposed by federal agencies, but not finalized, are a ban on noncompete clauses and a so-called “walkaround rule” that would make it easier for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to allow union representatives on private worksites.