On January 27, 2025, President Trump removed both National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo and NLRB Member Gwynne Wilcox from office. While the removal of GC Abruzzo was anticipated, the removal of Member Wilcox was not expected.
The firing of Wilcox is unprecedented and is directly contrary to the plain language of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) which requires that before discharging a Board member, the President must give the member notice and a hearing, and that removal can only occur if the member has engaged in dereliction of duty or malfeasance. Wilcox was given no notice or hearing before her removal and the President did not even allege wrongdoing in the letter terminating her. Instead, the President said that he was firing Abruzzo and Wilcox because they were too pro-labor and pro-worker.
Wilcox was twice confirmed by the Senate to her position and her term did not expire until 2028. It should be noted that Wilcox is a highly respected lawyer who represented UWUA Local 1-2 in many matters during her time in private practice. The UWUA signed a letter condemning Wilcox’s unjust termination and demanded that she be immediately reinstated to her position on the Board.
In early February, Wilcox challenged her dismissal from the NLRB in federal court.
The Board now is reduced to two members, which is less than a quorum, so the Board itself will be unable to function for the time being. This means that the Board will not be able to do things like issue decisions, rule on requests for review, or approve requests for 10(j) injunctive relief. However, those below the Board level should continue to operate.
In response to the Board losing its quorum, Whole Foods, an expensive grocery store owned by Jeff Bezos, announced that it would not recognize and bargain with the UFCW even though the workers at a Philadelphia store had just voted to unionize.
Elon Musk’s companies, Tesla and Space X, have filed lawsuits seeking to have the NLRA declared unconstitutional, so this may not be the end of the undermining of the NLRA which is the law that protects the UWUA’s right to organize and right to bargain with private sector employers.