Littler Shareholder Walter Hunter Testifies at Joint Congressional Hearing on NLRB Developments Affecting Higher Education

On September 12, Littler Shareholder Walter Hunter outlined a number of concerns facing higher education institutions in light of recent National Labor Relations Board developments. Testifying before the House Subcommittees on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) and Higher Education and Workforce Training, Hunter discussed various NLRB decisions and initiatives that he said are particularly problematic for the unique settings of our colleges and universities.

Opening the joint hearing, HELP Chairman Phil Roe (R-TN) asserted that the Board is “exploring actions that could bring significant changes to higher education institutions.” To this end, the hearing focused on the Board’s reexamination of its jurisdiction over graduate students, university faculty, and religious institutions.

Hunter – co-chair of Littler’s higher education practice group – emphasized that colleges and universities have a deep respect for the collective bargaining process where appropriate, but “will fiercely protect academic freedom, teaching, learning and research.” He touched upon several recent Board actions that would be detrimental in the university setting. Continue reading this entry at Littler's DC Employment Law Update.