It also said that the ALJ had accurately applied relevant Board precedent. That rationale was derived from the Section 7 protection afforded to concerted activity for the purpose of mutual aid or protection. As a consequence, the terminated employees would be entitled to reinstatement and back pay. The attorney representing the Epilepsy Foundation has promised to appeal the decision to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. So, stay tuned.
Many employers have rules that prohibit their employees from discussing wages.
Indeed, the Epilepsy Foundation of Northeast Ohio in the case discussed above apparently had such a rule because it had reprimanded Borgs months before his firing for having discussions about salary information with other employees. While the NLRB and some federal courts of appeals had addressed the lawfulness of such rules, the Sixth Circuit had not, at least not until July 6, 2000. Main Street Terrace Care Center , the Court unanimously upheld the NLRB's determination that a non-unionized nursing home's unwritten rule that prohibited employees from discussing wages amongst themselves constituted an unfair labor practice. The employer's proscription of any discussion of wages in Main Street Terrace was all-inclusive. A limited proscription may have survived the NLRB's challenge.