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National Labor Relations Board
CommissionsFor-cause removal
At a glance
Type
Independent regulatory commissions
Removal of leadership
Removable only for cause
Appointed by
Members appointed by the President, confirmed by the Senate
Structure
5-member commission · led by the Chairman
Term
5-year term · staggered
Funding
Annual appropriations
Independence
Independent
Removal protection contested: President Trump removed Board Chair Gwynne Wilcox in Jan. 2025 without statutory cause; in Trump v. Wilcox (No. 24A966, May 22, 2025) the Supreme Court stayed lower-court orders reinstating her pending appeal, allowing the removal to stand for now and leaving the constitutionality of the NLRA's for-cause protection unsettled. The statutory for-cause standard (29 U.S.C. 153(a)) remains on the books.
What it does
The NLRB is an independent federal agency that protects most private-sector employees' rights to join together, with or without a union, to improve wages and working conditions, including to organize, bargain collectively, or refrain from doing so. It conducts secret-ballot union elections and investigates and remedies unfair labor practices by employers and unions.
Labor
How it fits
Created by Congress under the National Labor Relations Act (Wagner Act) (Pub. L. 74-198, 49 Stat. 449 (July 5, 1935); 29 U.S.C. §§ 151-169 (Board at 29 U.S.C. § 153)), it acts within the authority that statute grants. Its actions are subject to judicial review and to congressional oversight and funding.
Recent actions
Sunshine Act Meetings Notice
Withdrawal of 2023 Standard for Determining Joint Employer Status
Notice of Appointments of Individuals To Serve as Members of Performance Review Boards
Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records
Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records
Notice of Appointments of Individuals To Serve as Members of Performance Review Boards
Notice of Appointments of Individuals To Serve as Members of Performance Review Boards
Sunshine Act Meetings