The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is an independent U.S. federal agency that enforces federal labor law for most private‑sector workplaces. It protects employees’ rights to act together to improve wages and working conditions (with or without a union), conducts secret‑ballot elections on whether workers want union representation, and investigates and remedies unfair labor practices by employers or unions, such as illegal retaliation, interference with organizing, or bad‑faith bargaining.
A "quorum" means the minimum number of Board members who must be in office and participating for the NLRB to legally issue decisions and take most official actions. By law, the NLRB has five seats, and the Supreme Court has held that at least three members are required to constitute a quorum and exercise the Board’s powers, so with Murphy and Mayer seated the Board again meets that three‑member minimum.
With a quorum, the five‑member NLRB can again decide the core cases Congress assigned to it: appeals in unfair‑labor‑practice cases (for example, claims of illegal firings, threats, or refusal to bargain), disputes and objections related to union‑representation elections (certifying or decertifying unions and defining bargaining units), and other Board business such as issuing remedies, clarifying bargaining obligations, and in some instances engaging in rulemaking that interprets the National Labor Relations Act.
Each NLRB Member is one of up to five presidentially appointed, Senate‑confirmed officials who collectively act as a quasi‑judicial board. Members review case records from NLRB administrative law judges and regional directors, vote on and issue written decisions in unfair‑labor‑practice and representation cases (which set nationwide precedent), decide appropriate remedies, participate in Board rulemaking, and oversee internal delegations of authority—so their votes and reasoning effectively shape U.S. private‑sector labor law.
Yes. Public reporting and Senate records show that Scott Mayer, like James Murphy, was nominated to the NLRB by President Donald Trump in 2025 and confirmed by the U.S. Senate in December 2025. Under the National Labor Relations Act, NLRB Members are nominated by the President, then must be vetted and voted on by the Senate (typically after a hearing in the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee); once confirmed, they serve staggered five‑year terms and can only be removed under limited conditions defined by law and later court rulings.
Marvin E. Kaplan is a lawyer who served as a Member of the NLRB from 2017 to August 27, 2025, including multiple stints as Chairman and, most recently, as Trump‑appointed Chair in 2025. James Murphy’s role as Kaplan’s Chief Counsel means he was the Chairman’s top legal adviser on Board cases and policy, giving him deep, recent experience with the agency’s internal workings and with how a prior Republican‑led Board interpreted and applied labor law—experience he now brings to his own votes as a Board Member.