Stuart Buttrick Talks to National Law Journal about Labor Board's Shielding of Online Rants

The National Labor Relations Board recently decided that a New York catering company was wrong to fire a worker who posted an expletive-filled rant on Facebook against his boss and his boss' family. To some, the ruling about social media marks the end of workplace civility, and to others, it's a boost to protected speech.

Stuart Buttrick, who leads the labor management relations team at Faegre Baker Daniels, explained to National Law Journal that the NLRB is using social media-related cases as an opportunity to stay relevant in nonunionized workplaces. "Employers otherwise ­blissfully unaware of obligations under the [National Labor Relations Act] now have to pay attention to it," he said. "They have to consider what to do about employees on social media."

This article was also published in Corporate Counsel on June 1, 2015.

Please note that the article includes quotes containing explicit language.