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New Board Members
Marvin E. Kaplan and William J. Emanuel
Marvin
E. Kaplan was sworn in on August 10, 2017, for a term ending on August 27,
2020. Mr. Kaplan was confirmed by the Senate on August 2, 2017. Prior to his
appointment to the NLRB, Mr. Kaplan served as Chief Counsel to the Chairman of
the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. Before his work with the
Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission, he served as counsel for the
House of Representatives’ Oversight Government Reform Committee and as policy
counsel for the House of Representatives’ Education and the Workforce
Committee. He also worked at the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Labor
Management Standards and with the law firm McDowell Rice Smith & Buchanan.
Mr. Kaplan received his J.D. from Washington University in St Louis, and his
B.S. from Cornell University.
William
J. Emanuel was sworn in on September 26, 2017, for a term ending on August 27,
2021. Mr. Emanuel was confirmed by the Senate on September 25, 2017. Prior to
his appointment to the NLRB, Mr. Emanuel served as a shareholder with the law
firm Littler Mendelson, P.C. Before joining Littler Mendelson, he
practiced labor law at several other firms, including Jones Day and
Morgan, Lewis & Bockius. He has authored labor publications and several
amicus curiae briefs. He served as the former Chairman of the Labor Relations
Advisory Committee and as the former Chair of the Employers Group Legal
Committee. Mr. Emanuel received his J.D. from Georgetown University, and his
B.A. from Marquette University.
End of Chairman Miscimarra's Term
NLRB Chairman Philip A. Miscimarra has announced that he
will not seek reappointment when his current term ends on December 16, 2017. In
his letter to President Trump, Chairman Miscimarra stated that “it will be difficult to leave my colleagues and the
dedicated staff attorneys and others in the Agency who do so much of the NLRB’s
important work. However, I have no doubt that the Board will continue
diligently serving the American people and the interests of employees,
employers and unions throughout the country.”
Region 13
Participates in 10th Annual Latin American Labor Rights Week
As
in past years, several Region 13 staff participated in Chicago’s 10th
Annual Latin American Labor Rights Week. Field Examiner Maria G. Guerrero
coordinated the event for Region 13 and participated in the planning effort
with representatives of the Consulate General of Mexico in Chicago. This year’s
theme “Conoce tus derechos : Trabajador
Bien Informado” (Know your rights: Be a Well Informed Worker) highlights
the importance of providing the community members with education about their rights in
labor matters, how they can protect and defend those rights, and how to report
potential violations to the appropriate State and Federal Agencies.
In
order to carry out this important task, the events in Chicago were held during
a two-week span from August 18th to September 1, 2017. Region 13
visited five consular offices in Chicago. Events were carried out at the Consulates
of Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, and Ecuador. At each of these
consular offices, representatives of Region 13 held presentations to inform the
public about their rights under the National Labor Relations Act and set up an
information table to hand out flyers and answer questions about the Agency.
In
addition to the Consular office visits during the work day, outreach activities
were carried out in the evenings and on weekends at
various churches and social centers in the cities of Chicago, Des Plaines,
Cicero, and Melrose Park, Illinois. At all of these events, representatives set up information
tables, answered questions, and gave short presentations, in Spanish, about the
Act. Region 13’s participation in all of these events would not have been
possible without the assistance of several Region 13 staff including, Field
Attorney Elizabeth Cortez, Language Assistant Evangelina Covarrubias, Field
Attorney Helen Gutierrez, Regional Director Secretary Maria Gavina-Arriola,
Field Attorney Emily O’Neil, Language Assistant Zulma Ocampo and Supervisory
Field Examiner Paul Prokop.
Through these joint efforts with the
Consulate General of Mexico, Region 13 has been able to reach hundreds of
workers over the years. Every year through this annual event, we are reminded
that we must ensure that the most vulnerable among us are well informed.
Knowledge itself empowers the worker and in this way, workers can be proactive
about ensuring that they are treated with dignity and respect in the workplace.
Through outreach we help carry out the Agency’s mission and commitment to
workplace democracy.
 Language Assistant Evangelina Covarrubias and Field Examiner Maria Guerrero
Section
10(j) Relief Granted in Two Region 13 Cases
On August 24, 2017, the
Honorable John Z. Lee of the United States District Court, Northern District of
Illinois, issued an Order requiring Advocate Medical Group to recognize and
bargain with the Illinois Nurses Association (INA or Union).
Region 13 had initially issued complaint
against Advocate in October 2016, asserting that Advocate was a successor
employer for the unit of advance practice nurses and that its failure to
recognize and bargain with the INA since May 2016 violated Section 8(a)(5) of
the Act. The Region also alleged in its
complaint that Advocate interfered with and interrogated employees about their
Union activities/support/affiliation in violation of Section 8(a)(1) of the
Act.
On
September 11, 2017, Administrative Law Judge Elizabeth Tafe issued a decision
in the underlying case wherein she found that Advocate was a successor employer; that
Advocate had violated Section 8(a)(5) by failing and refusing to recognize the
INA; and that Advocate had independently violated Section 8(a)(1) by
interrogating employees and interfering with employees’ union
activities/support by asking them not to sign anything for the Union. Judge Tafe ordered that Advocate recognize
and bargain with the Union for the historical bargaining unit. On September 29,
2017, Region 13 approved a settlement agreement between Advocate and the Union
fully remedying all outstanding allegations in the complaint.
Field
Attorney Lisa Friedheim-Weis litigated the case before the ALJ and in Federal District Court, following the investigation by Field Examiner Jay
Greenhill. Field Attorneys Vivian Robles
and Kevin McCormick assisted with litigation preparation, while Compliance
Specialist Nakisha Skinner provided administrative support. Supervisory Field
Examiner Kate Gianopulos and former Deputy Regional Attorney Richard Kelliher-Paz supervised the investigation and litigation, respectively.
The Federal District
Court Order can be viewed at this link.
The Administrative Law Judge decision can be viewed at this link.
On August 17, 2017, the Honorable Thomas M.
Durkin of the United States District Court, Northern District of Illinois,
issued an Order granting Region 13’s 10(j) Petition for Preliminary Injunction
against Universal Security. The Court’s Order, among other things, required
Universal Security to immediately reinstate two former security guards.
Region 2 Field Attorney Nick Rowe and Field Attorney Andrea
James litigated the case before the ALJ, while Andrea James litigated the case
in Federal District Court. Field Examiner Catherine Schlabowske investigated
the underlying charges, and Litigation Support Assistant Rosie Everett-Stewart
provided administrative support. Supervisory Field Examiner Joyce Hofstra and
Supervisory Field Attorney Jeanette Schrand supervised the investigation and
litigation, respectively.
The Federal Court Order can be viewed at this link.
 City of Chicago Hate Crimes Summit
On October 25, 2017, in response to the reported increase in hate crimes across the country, the City of Chicago Commission on Human Relations will host a Hate Crimes Summit to raise awareness regarding hate crimes, address the barriers to reporting, and provide opportunities for networking, collaboration and study. Audiences that the City of Chicago seeks to serve include educators, law enforcement, general community, researchers, policy makers, and service providers.
Details of the Summit can be found at this link.
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Recent Significant Settlements
In Prompt Ambulance, the Region negotiated a significant settlement that involved offers of reinstatement and substantial backpay awards for six terminated employees. The Employer also admitted to some of the unfair labor practices in the settlement, revoked its unilateral changes, and agreed to grant overdue raises to two of the discriminatees. When it came to light partway through settlement negotiations that two of the discriminatees had been receiving matching 401k contributions before being fired, the Region ensured that their backpay awards increased accordingly. Field Attorney Michael Schorsch facilitated the settlement.
In XPO Logistics Freight, the Region obtained a settlement agreement that included significant backpay for five employees. The Region was able to secure backpay awards that exceeded 100% as a measure to offset for the fact that the employees waived reinstatement. Two of the employees also received compensation to cover the consequences of receiving lump-sum backpay awards. Under the terms of the settlement, the Employer was also required to remove from the employees’ files all references to their discharges along with specific disciplinary actions the Region had found to be discriminatory. Field Attorneys Vivian Robles and Michael Schorsch facilitated the settlements with the parties.
Region 13 Places Two
Winners in 2017 NLRB Honorary Awards
For the fourth straight year, members of the Region 13 staff
were recognized at the NLRB’s Honorary Awards Recognition Ceremony. The
recipients are chosen from a national pool of nominees. This year, Field
Examiner Jana Prokop was awarded the Gerald Brown Award for outstanding Field
Examiner. During the ceremony, Supervisor Kate Gianopulos, who received the
Excellence in Management award in 2015, highlighted Jana’s strong commitment
and work ethic, as well as her ability to broker settlements in her cases. Jana
joins prior Region 13 Gerald Brown winners Catherine Schlabowske (2014) and
Maria Guerrero (2016). Additionally, Supervisor Paul Prokop received the Excellence in
Outreach award as recognition for his efforts in ensuring that employees and
various organizations in the Chicago area are aware of the protections offered
by the National Labor Relations Act. Region 13 staff joined in the ceremony via
videoconference as General Counsel Richard Griffin presented each award.
 Supervisory Field Examiner Kate Gianopulos, Gerald Brown Award Winner Jana Prokop, Excellence in Outreach Winner Paul Prokop and Regional Director Peter Sung Ohr
Arrivals and Departures
Supervisory Field Attorney Jeanette Schrand and Field
Attorney Andrea James resigned from the Agency effective September 29, 2017.
Jeanette served in Region 13 for almost 19 years.
Her dedication to the Act and the Region was unparalleled, and she achieved
steady success in the courtroom. Her breadth of knowledge and work ethic will
be sorely missed in Region 13, but we wish her well as her next professional
journey unfolds. Jeanette will be joining the Administrative Law Judge ranks
with the Social Security Administration.
Andrea contributed immensely to the mission of the Agency during her three years of service. She honed her investigative and legal skills and recently posted a victory in district
court in the above-noted Universal Security case. Andrea will be practicing law
in the private sector in Houston.
We congratulate them both on their accomplishments with the
NLRB and wish them well in their future endeavors. Please join us in
congratulating them. They will be sorely missed.
Summer Interns Return to their Studies
This summer the Region was very fortunate to have three
interns – Tom Carden, Sebastian Torero and Brian Fernandez. The interns
assisted our agents with investigations and elections, and they pitched in on
various projects. They were critical to our mission as they kept cases moving
along during the summer, when many agents take vacation. We thank them for
their service and wish them well with their continued studies and other
endeavors. We believe that their time in the Region and exposure to
investigations and elections will serve them well in the future.
Tom will return to his undergraduate studies in Public
Policy at the University of Chicago, where he will enter his final year.
Sebastian recently finished two years of study in France as part of the Dual
Bachelor of Arts program between Sciences Po University and Columbia University. This
fall, he is headed to Columbia University for two more years of study, with a
major in Human Rights. Brian will continue at Northern Illinois University
College of Law, where he will start his second year of law school.
 Regional Director Peter Sung Ohr with Tom Carden, Sebastian Torero and Brian Fernandez
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