Musical Chairs: Ring Named Chairman of the NLRB

After being confirmed by the Senate as the newest National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) member last week, John Ring now has been appointed the agency’s chairman by President Trump.

The NLRB announced in a press release on April 16, “John F. Ring was sworn in today as Chairman of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) for a term ending on December 16, 2022. He succeeds Philip A. Miscimarra, who served on the Board from August 7, 2013 to December 16, 2017 (serving as Chairman from April 24, 2017 to December 16, 2017). Mr. Ring was confirmed by the Senate on April 11, 2018. Mr. Ring’s predecessor as Chairman, Board Member Marvin E. Kaplan, stated: ‘It has been my honor to serve as Chairman these past months and it is my pleasure to welcome John Ring to the National Labor Relations Board. His wealth of experience in labor and employment law will undoubtedly serve our Agency and the American people well. My colleagues and I greatly look forward to continuing the important work of the Board under Chairman Ring’s leadership.’”

Member Kaplan had been serving as chair since Member Miscimarra’s departure at the end of last year. Immediately prior to Miscimarra’s departure, he along with members Kaplan and Emanuel issued a flurry of noteworthy decisions widely viewed as being favorable to employers, including revising the standard the board uses when evaluating employer personnel policies. Since that time, however, the board had been left with a 2-2 Republican/Democrat split, resulting in no significant precedent-changing decisions.

With Ring at the helm, we may see significant change coming on big ticket items before the board in the near future, such as modification or rescission of the ambush election rules. Stay tuned.

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