In an opinion issued on May 5, Michigan Supreme Court Justices Kelly, Young, Cavanagh, Markman, McCormack and Viviano held that neither the National Labor Relations Act nor the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act preempts Whistleblowers' Protection Act claims premised on reporting suspected criminal misconduct.
More specifically, the court ruled that NLRA "does not cover the reporting of suspected criminal misconduct, while the LMRDA does not provide a union official with discretion to cover up suspected criminal misconduct by retaliating against employees who report their allegations." However, plaintiffs' allegations of retaliation for "their reporting of improper wages and an unsafe work environment cover conduct 'arguably prohibited'" by the NLRA and, as a result, must be litigated exclusively before the NLRB.
Justice Zahra concurred in part and dissented in part.
Read the opinion in full.
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Posted by Samantha Meinke
