In a memorandum issued by General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) instructed different officials, both from the Board and other legal bodies, to seek resources that allow better handling of unfair dismissal cases and other situations that affect employees and unions.
While previous iterations of the Board have authorized employees to recoup lost wages and other compensation legally, the remedies available for wrongful termination cases had been less extensive up to this point, mainly due to the provisions of the statutes of the Board. ADA, FMLA, and most other labor laws.
Until the issuance of this release, the Board had not implemented strategies for employees victims of unfair dismissal to obtain punitive damages, traditional liquidated damages, or certain types of consequential and compensatory damages (such as, for example, compensation for emotional damage in the workplace or most types of financial loss not covered by lost wage charges).
In this latest memorandum, Abruzzo instructed regional authorities to devise legal remedies tailored to various cases, emphasizing unfair dismissal matters. Abruzzo gave specific instructions to regional officials to request the legalization of compensation processes for damages derived from the dismissal. The introduction of this measure would allow an unfairly dismissed employee to possibly recover covered medical expenses in the absence of insurance or penalties for debts related to renting or late payments on credit cards.
This announcement represents an additional motivation for employers who have not followed the evolution of labor laws in detail. This has created a situation where it becomes more necessary than ever to treat employees and unions with diligence and respect, ensuring compliance with the regulations implemented to improve the quality of work environments throughout the country.