A federal judge in Texas has issued a ruling blocking a new rule by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) that aimed to facilitate the formation of unions for workers at large companies. The rule, which was set to take effect on Monday, sought to establish revised criteria for determining when two companies should be classified as 'joint employers' in labor negotiations.
Under the current NLRB rule, a company like McDonald’s is not considered a joint employer of most of its workers as they are directly employed by franchisees. The proposed rule would have broadened this definition to include companies that have the ability to control at least one condition of employment, such as wages, benefits, scheduling, duties, work rules, and hiring.
