On January 26, 2011 President Obama nominated Craig Becker to fill the remainder of a five-year term as a board member of the NLRB.  Obama has been intent on securing Becker a seat on the Board as far back as 2009.  He originally nominated Becker in July 2009, but his nomination has been a lighting rod.  Becker’s role as a former Associate General Counsel to the AFL-CIO and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) (and the various legal positions he took in those positions over the years) has caused great concern about his approach to the interpreting and enforcing the National Labor Relations Act.CraigBecker.jpg

When the Senate was unable to act on his nomination, Becker was given a recess appointment in March 27, 2010 – – giving him a seat on the NLRB until December 2011.

Becker’s time on the Board has done nothing to calm the uproar over this nomination.  In the days following the announcement, the Workforce Fairness Institute, Alliance for Worker Freedom, and the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace all expressed disappointment and condemned the appointment.  Additionally, Senators Mike Enzi (R-Wyo) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) immediately called for the withdrawal of the nomination in a letter to President Obama, stating “[Becker] has led the Board to reopen and reverse settled decisions, made discrete cases a launching point for broad changes to current labor law, and used an 18-year-old petition to initiate a rulemaking proposal [to create a new employee NLRA rights poster] that likely exceeds the Board’s statutory authority.”  And, now, all 48 Republican senators have signed on to the letter calling for the withdrawal of the nomination.

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Photo of Michael Lebowich Michael Lebowich

Michael J. Lebowich is a partner in the Labor & Employment Law Department and co-head of the Labor-Management Relations Group. He represents and counsels employers on a wide range of labor and employment matters, with a particular interest in the field of traditional…

Michael J. Lebowich is a partner in the Labor & Employment Law Department and co-head of the Labor-Management Relations Group. He represents and counsels employers on a wide range of labor and employment matters, with a particular interest in the field of traditional labor law.

Michael acts as the primary spokesperson in collective bargaining negotiations, regularly handles grievance arbitrations, assists clients in the labor implications of corporate transactions, and counsels clients on union organizing issues, strike preparation and day-to-day contract administration issues. He also has significant experience in representation and unfair labor practice matters before the National Labor Relations Board.

His broad employment law experience includes handling of race, national origin, gender and other discrimination matters in state and federal court. A significant amount of his practice is devoted to counseling clients regarding the application and practical impact of the full range of employment laws that affect our clients, including all local, state and federal employment discrimination statutes, the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, and state labor laws.

Michael has substantial experience in a wide variety of industries, including entertainment, broadcasting, newspaper publishing and delivery, utilities and lodging. He represents such clients as The New York Times, BuzzFeed, ABC, the New York City Ballet, PPL, Pacific Gas & Electric, Host Hotels and Resorts, and The Broadway League (and many of its theater owner and producing members).  Michael also has significant public sector experience representing, among others, the City of New York and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

Michael is a frequent guest lecturer at Columbia Business School, the Cornell School of Hotel Administration, the New York University Tisch School for Hospitality, Tourism and Sports Management, and is an advisory board member of the Cornell Institute for Hospitality Labor and Employment Relations.

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