Labor & Employment Law Daily Wrap Up, HOUSE NEWS—Ranking committee members call for reversal of termination of NLRB Chair, (Feb 14, 2025)

By Brandi O. Brown, J.D.

“This firing not only violates the law but also undermines and weakens our democracy; represents an intrusion into Congress’s Article I constitutional legislative authority; and, puts workers in America at risk.”

On January 27, 2025, President Trump fired from the National Labor Relations Board Chair Gwynne Wilcox. Named to the Board in 2021, Gwynne Wilcox was the first Black woman to serve on the Board since its inception. In September 2023, she was sworn in for a term that was not set to end until August 27, 2028. Nevertheless, she was fired and Trump appointed Marvin Kaplan as NLRB Chairman.

Reverse the firing. Now, U.S. House Representative Gerald E. Connolly, Ranking Member of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Rep. Robert C. “Bobby” Scott, Ranking Member of the Committee on Education and Workforce, and Rep. Jamie Raskin, Ranking Member of the Committee on the Judiciary, are calling on Trump to reverse this firing, which they contend is unlawful and robs the NLRB of a quorum to continue its vital work.

“This firing not only violates the law but also undermines and weakens our democracy; represents an intrusion into Congress’s Article I constitutional legislative authority; and, puts workers in America at risk,” they write in a letter dated February 12, 2025.

Undermines worker protection. “The illegal and meritless firing of Member Wilcox undermines the ability of the NLRB to protect American workers,” they add. “In fact, the rationale provided for Member Wilcox’s termination mirrors the very arguments made by Elon Musk’s SpaceX—who is a member of your Administration—to quash complaints of violating labor law and dismantle the NLRB’s independence.”

Solicitor General’s implicit concession. They also reference the letter sent by the Department of Justice, in which the Solicitor General of that agency “informed the Committee on the Judiciary that your Administration does not intend to defend the constitutionality of statutory tenure protections like the one in the NLRA.” They add, “In doing so, the Acting Solicitor General implicitly concedes that the firing of Ms. Wilcox and members of other independent federal agencies violates both federal law and Supreme Court precedent.”

In addition to its “illegality,” they add, “the termination of Member Wilcox lacks any merit.”

For the reasons they stated, and in keeping with the Committees’ oversight responsibilities, the Ranking Members requested “any and all information, documents, and communications related to the decision and the termination of Member Wilcox” and they provided a specific list of items they seek, including various communications and documents.

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