NFIB has submitted an amicus brief in the case National Labor Relations Board v. N.Y. State Public Employment Relations Board, et al., currently before the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York. The central issue in the case is whether a New York law that expands a state agency’s authority over private-sector labor relations conflicts with the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) by taking authority away from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Several business groups joined NFIB in filing the brief.
Beth Milito, Vice President and Executive Director of NFIB’s Small Business Legal Center, commented on the issue: “Small businesses are already inundated with onerous regulations and high operating costs. This law simply adds to that burden by creating a duplicative regulatory body for small businesses in New York. Congress established the NLRB to create one unified set of laws governing labor matters for all states. New York wants to ignore the will of Congress to add yet another layer of compliance for the state’s already-struggling Main Street businesses.”
The amicus brief argues two main points: first, that section 715 of the New York Labor Law, as amended, is exclusive even when the NLRB does not exercise jurisdiction; and second, that this section could disrupt stability provided by a national system and cause confusion in labor markets across the country. The brief was filed together with Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC), Associated General Contractors, New York State, the Business Council of New York State, Inc., the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and the Washington Legal Foundation (WLF).
NFIB has also participated in another ongoing legal challenge regarding this law through an amicus brief in Amazon.com Services LLC v. N.Y. State Public Employment Relations Board, et al., which is being heard at the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.
The NFIB Small Business Legal Center continues its work protecting small business owners’ rights in courts nationwide and is involved in more than 40 cases at various levels of federal and state courts as well as at the U.S. Supreme Court.
