NLRB tosses case against Tesla over workplace IT policies

Tesla

29/10/2026 15:20

By Daniel Wiessner
Oct 29 (Reuters) - The National Labor Relations Board has dismissed a complaint accusing Tesla of trying to thwart union organizing at its Buffalo, New York, assembly plant through restrictive rules on IT use.
The board on Wednesday summarily upheld an administrative law judge's decision that nixed a complaint issued in 2024
The judge had found that Tesla's IT policies, including barring workers from having phones, validly protected confidential information
The union argued to the NLRB that the judge should have applied a Biden-era test making it easier to challenge workplace rules instead of a more business-friendly standard from President Donald Trump's first term
Wednesday's panel included David Prouty, the board's lone Democratic member
Tesla has faced a series of NLRB complaints but has beaten several of them, including claims that union supporters at the Buffalo plant were unlawfully fired
     
The case is Tesla Inc, National Labor Relations Board, No. 03–CA–312352.
For Tesla: David Broderdorf of Morgan Lewis & Bockius
For the NLRB general counsel: Sarah Crowley
For the union: Ian Hayes of Hayes Dolce
     
Read more:
Tesla interfered with union organizing at New York plant, US agency claims
Tesla beats US claim that it fired factory workers amid union campaign
Tesla can bar US factory workers from wearing union t-shirts, court rules
US labor board says work rules cannot hamper unionizing

(Reporting by Daniel Wiessner in Albany, New York)