In United States labor law, the term unfair labor practice refers to certain actions taken by employers or unions that violate the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and other legislation. Such acts are investigated by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

The NLRB has the authority to investigate and remedy unfair labor practices, which are defined in Section 8 of the Act. In broad terms, the NLRA makes it unlawful for an employer to:

Interfere with, restrain, or coerce employees in the exercise of their rights to engage in protected concerted activity or union activities or refrain from them; to dominate or interfere with the formation or administration of a labor organization; to discriminate against employees for engaging in concerted or union activities or refraining from them; to discriminate against an employee for filing charges with the NLRB or taking part in any NLRB proceedings; and to refuse to bargain with the union that is the lawful representative of its employees. Learn more about this with the North Carolina employment lawyer.

Not every unfair act amounts to an unfair labor practice; as an example, failing to pay an individual worker overtime pay for hours worked in excess of forty hours in a week might be a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act, but it is unlikely to amount to an unfair labor practice as well.

Similarly, a violation of a collective bargaining agreement, standing alone, may not constitute an unfair labor practice unless the employer has not only violated the contract but repudiated all or part of it. The North Carolina employment lawyer can provide more information about this.

While the employees of the NLRB may assist individuals in filing charges, they cannot file charges on their own. Such charges must be filed and served within six months of the events that constitute the basis of the charge. This deadline may be extended in some cases, e.g., if the party fraudulently conceals its violations of the law. Charges may also be amended if done so within six months of the alleged violation. If you want more information on labour law and other laws concerning employment, then visit the North Carolina employment lawyer.