Lakepointe Senior Care & Rehab, LLC, operates a long-term care facility in Michigan.

It employs licensed practical nurses and registered nurses, which together are called “charge nurses.” The National Labor Relations Board permitted the charge nurses to bargain with Lakepointe through a union, SEIU Healthcare Michigan (the Union), because the Board determined that they were “employees” rather than “supervisors” under the National Labor Relations Act. . . .

The National Labor Relations Act gives employees, but not supervisors, the right to bargain collectively with their employers. The Board’s regional directors determine who counts as an “employee” under the Act. . . .After the Board identifies a group of employees who are entitled to union representation, it allows them to vote on whether the union will represent their interests. If a majority of the employees vote to join the union, but their employer refuses to bargain with it, the Board may find that the employer has committed an “unfair labor practice” in violation of the Act and order the employer to bargain.

In 2005, the Union asked the Board to recognize Lakepointe’s charge nurses as employees under the Act, so that the Union could represent them. In the representation proceeding that followed, the Board found that Lakepointe’s charge nurses were supervisors rather than employees. It therefore denied the Union’s request. About ten years later, the Union filed another petition with the Board, again seeking to bargain on behalf of Lakepointe’s charge nurses.

Lakepointe moved to dismiss, arguing that the Board’s earlier determination that the nurses were supervisors barred the Union’s second petition to represent them. The Board’s regional director denied Lakepointe’s motion and held a representation hearing, during which Lakepointe offered evidence that its charge nurses supervised its certified nursing assistants. The regional director determined that Lakepointe’s charge nurses were employees and thus were entitled to union representation. A majority of the nurses thereafter voted to join the Union, but Lakepointe refused to bargain with the Union on their behalf. The Union filed a complaint with the Board, which determined that Lakepointe’s refusal was an unfair labor practice.

Hence the Board ordered Lakepointe to bargain. The Board now petitions for enforcement of that order...............

Discussion Questions

1. What does “LLC” stand for in the rehab center’s name?
2. Why does an employer care whether “supervisors” are included in a bargaining unit with other employees?