Seyfarth Synopsis: In Loomis Armored
US, Inc., 364 NLRB No. 23 (2016), the NLRB abandoned its
long-established precedent from Wells Fargo Corp., 270 NLRB
787 (1984), and held that employers may not refuse to bargain
with a "mixed-guard" union whom the employer has
voluntarily recognized.
These days, employers are having a harder time relying on
well-established law from the NLRB. On June 9, 2016, the Board
issued its decision in Loomis Armored US, Inc., abandoning
the standard it adopted more than 30 years ago in Wells Fargo
Corp., regarding the withdrawal of recognition of
"mixed-guard" units.
Loomis Armored US, Inc. ("Loomis") had voluntary
bargaining relationships with 10 "mixed-guard" units, at
least one of which dated back 47 years. In 2010, Loomis refused to
bargain with the union and withdrew recognition from six of these
mixed-guard units. Despite the clear precedent in Wells
Fargo, the NLRB took the position that "once an employer
has voluntarily
