News
In the July 23, 2025, edition of The New York Times Dealbook, Labor & Employment Principal Meredith Kirshenbaum confirms that key Biden-era rulings could be in jeopardy once President Trump’s new National Labor Relations Board choices are confirmed.
For most of the year, the NLRB has been unable to perform many of its functions as a key arbiter on labor disputes after Trump fired a Democratic member of the board in his first week in office, “depriving the independent agency of the three-member quorum needed to issue decisions, including those around collective bargaining and whether companies must recognize union votes,” says the article.
The agency has issued six published decisions since Inauguration Day in January 2025, compared with 60 during the same six-month period in 2024, according to Bloomberg Law.
However, the article reports that the agency is on track to be up and running again now that Trump has named two new picks for the board. They are:
- Scott Mayer, who is chief labor counsel at Boeing, a position he held during the company’s strike last year that temporarily halted production at key plants. The Dealbook reports that his resume is dotted with stints at InterContinental and Aramark and management-side law firms.
- James Murphy, who has spent much of his career at the NLRB, serving as chief counsel to multiple board members.
A reconstituted agency could have big implications for employers as the president seems determined to roll back Biden-era protections for workers, reports the article. If the labor board reaches a quorum, it would have a Republican majority and potentially fulfill Trump’s goal. Notable protections include the Cemex framework that establishes rules for bargaining with unions, and a ban on so-called captive audience meetings.
“There really are practical, tangible implications,” Meredith Kirshenbaum told DealBook.
But changes might not come swiftly as Trump’s picks still need Senate confirmation, concludes the article.
