Senate Approves NLRB Appointments

The U.S. Senate confirmed union lawyer Mark Pearce and Republican policy director Brian Hayes to serve as commissioners of the National Labor Relations Board. Senators did not, however, confirm the controversial nomination of former Service Employees International Union Counsel Craig Becker.

The approval gives the Board a full five-member panel for the first time in almost 3 years. Board members serve staggered terms. Pearce's term will run until August 2013, while Hayes term will expire in December 2012. President Obama nominated Hayes (R) to fill a longer-standing vacancy, ensuring that his term will expire sooner. 

The confirmations of Pearce and Hayes follow the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling on Board authority. The Court ruled 5-4 that a two-member Board lacks the authority to issue decisions. The Supreme Court ruling will have implications on the timeliness of nominations, confirmations, and recess appointments, in order to maintain the Board’s legitimacy.

Becker's recess appointment is set to expire at the end of 2011. It has been suggested that upon the conclusion of Becker's recess appointment, he may be installed as the Board’s General Counsel. As the official responsible for the investigation and prosecution of unfair labor practice cases and for the general supervision of NLRB field offices, the General Counsel position is as significant as the Board members themselves.