Court sends NLRB back to drawing board on joint employment.

• Position: Nuts & Bolts

A recent court decision has added new pressure on the National Labor Relations Board to develop a joint-employer standard that allows employers a reasonable level of control over their relationships with providers of contract labor.

THE LAW The National Labor Relations Act regulates labor organizing for both employees and employers. It provides a framework for union elections and collective bargaining. It applies to both unionized and nonunionized workplaces.

The National Labor Relations Board interprets the act as it applies to specific employer-employee disputes. NLRB decisions interpreting the NLRA determine the finer points of labor relations, including what constitutes a joint employer.

Before 2015, the NLRB had held that a joint-employer relationship existed when "two separate entities share or codetermine those matters governing the essential terms and conditions of employment."

The employer had to "meaningfully affect matters relating to the employment relationship such as hiring, firing, discipline, supervision and direction." The employer's control had to be "direct and immediate."

Then in 2015, the NLRB's decision in Browning-Ferris, Inc. attempted to update the...