Wilma B. Liebman
Encyclopedia
Wilma B. Liebman is an American
lawyer
and civil servant who is best known for serving as a Member of the National Labor Relations Board
(NLRB). She was designated Chair of the Board by President
Barack Obama
on January 20, 2009, becoming only the second woman to lead the NLRB.
, in 1950. She received a bachelor's degree
from Barnard College
in 1971, and her J.D.
from the George Washington University Law School in 1974.
Immediately upon graduation from law school she was appointed a staff attorney with the National Labor Relations Board, and served with the agency until 1980. She left the NLRB and was a senior attorney representing the International Brotherhood of Teamsters
from 1980 to 1989. In 1990, Liebman became general counsel for the International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers
, a position she held for three years.
, and helped resolve the 1994–95 Major League Baseball strike in the U.S. and Canada
. She was promoted to Deputy Director of the FMCS in 1995 and served for two years in that position. As Deputy Director, Liebman oversaw the agency's operations; supervised the heads of the alternative dispute resolution
, arbitration
, international affairs, and labor-management cooperation grants divisions; and provided expertise and advice to the Director regarding major labor disputes.
President Bill Clinton
appointed Liebman as a Member of the NLRB in October 1997, and the United States Senate
confirmed
her on November 14. She was reappointed by President George W. Bush
in December 2002. President Bush re-appointed her a third time in August 2006 for a term that will expire in August 2011. Liebman often found herself in the minority on the NLRB from 2001 to 2008, as the Republican
-appointed majority overruled a number of precedents and made a number of policy decisions that appeared to favor employers. After a November 2007 protest by labor unions in front of the NLRB's headquarters (during which unions demanded the Board be abolished), Liebman became even more outspoken, arguing that the Board had made "some rather dramatic shifts in[labor] policy ... what this board is doing is giving much more focus to the right to refrain [from union organizing] than the underlying policy goal of encouraging collective bargaining." She was outspoken as a Member about what she perceived to be the failings of the Republican majority on the Board during her first 10 years in office. "By virtually all measures this law is derelict if not dead," she told a labor law conference in May 2007. She felt that Chair Robert J. Battista had made the "board and the board's decision-making ... much more divisive". She clashed repeatedly with Battista during a hearing before the House Committee on Education and Labor in December 2007, declaring "Virtually every recent policy choice by the board impedes collective bargaining, creates obstacles to union representation or favors employer interests." "Today, fewer workers have fewer rights and weaker remedies under the National Labor Relations Act," she continued. She also accused Battista and other Republican members of the Board of "narrowly casting existing precedent" and ignoring precedents "if they stand in the way of a desired result." She portrayed the majority's view of the law as contradictory to prevailing academic opinion. She was particularly critical of the NRLB's recent decision in Dana Corp., 351 NLRB No. 28 (Sept. 29, 2007), which she felt broke precedent extending back to 1960 and under which a "minority [can] undo what a majority has expressed a desire to do."
On his first day in office, President Barack Obama
designated Liebman to be the NLRB's Chair. She was the second woman to hold the position in the in the board's 78 year history. During her first year as Chair, Liebman confronted a five-member Board which only had two members. Since three members' terms expired in December 2007, the NLRB has operated with just two members—Liebman and Member Peter Schaumber. President George W. Bush refused to make some nominations to the Board and Senate Democrats
refused to confirm others. Just before the Board lost a quorum, the five Members agreed to delegate their authority to a three-person panel (as provided for by the National Labor Relations Act
). Only two of the members of the panel (Liebman and Schaumber) would remain on the Board, but the Board concluded that these two members would constitute a quorum
of the panel and thus could make decisions on behalf of the entire Board. Liebman and Schaumber informally agreed to decide only those cases which were noncontroversial (in their view), and issued more than 400 decisions between January 2008 and September 2009. In April 2009, President Obama nominated Craig Becker (Associate General Counsel of the Service Employees International Union
), Mark Gaston Pearce (a member on the Industrial Board of Appeals, an agency of the New York State Department of Labor), and Brian Hayes (Republican Labor Policy Director for the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
) to fill the three empty seats on the NLRB. Meanwhile, the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals
, 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals
, and 7th Circuit Court of Appeals
all upheld the two-member rump NLRB's authority to decide cases, while the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals
did not. In September 2009, the Justice Department
asked the U.S. Supreme Court
to immediately hear arguments concerning the dispute, given the high stakes involved. The Supreme Court granted certiorari
in October and agreed to decide the issue. In the spring of 2010, the Supreme Court ruled that the NLRB could have no quorum with just two members, likely invalidating hundreds of previous rulings made by Liebman and Schaumber. Becker's nomination appeared to fail on February 8, 2010, after Republican Senators (led by John McCain
) threatened to filibuster his nomination. President Obama said he would consider making recess appointment
s to the NLRB due to the Senate's failure to move on any of the three nominations. True to his word, Obama on March 27, 2010 recess appointed both Becker and Pearce to the NLRB.
Since becoming Chair, Liebman has called for Congress to update and revise the National Labor Relations Act, which has not undergone any fundamental revisions since 1947. "It is unrealistic to expect fundamental change in labor because we are constrained by the law's statutory text, precedent, the review process and constant turnover of board members," she told a Congressional hearing in September 2009.
Liebman stepped down as chair of the NLRB and as a member of the board when her term expired on August 27, 2011. President Obama named Mark Gaston Pearce as her replacement as chair.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
and civil servant who is best known for serving as a Member of the National Labor Relations Board
National Labor Relations Board
The National Labor Relations Board is an independent agency of the United States government charged with conducting elections for labor union representation and with investigating and remedying unfair labor practices. Unfair labor practices may involve union-related situations or instances of...
(NLRB). She was designated Chair of the Board by President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
on January 20, 2009, becoming only the second woman to lead the NLRB.
Early life and career
Liebman was born in Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
, in 1950. She received a bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
from Barnard College
Barnard College
Barnard College is a private women's liberal arts college and a member of the Seven Sisters. Founded in 1889, Barnard has been affiliated with Columbia University since 1900. The campus stretches along Broadway between 116th and 120th Streets in the Morningside Heights neighborhood in the borough...
in 1971, and her J.D.
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
from the George Washington University Law School in 1974.
Immediately upon graduation from law school she was appointed a staff attorney with the National Labor Relations Board, and served with the agency until 1980. She left the NLRB and was a senior attorney representing the International Brotherhood of Teamsters
Teamsters
The International Brotherhood of Teamsters is a labor union in the United States and Canada. Formed in 1903 by the merger of several local and regional locals of teamsters, the union now represents a diverse membership of blue-collar and professional workers in both the public and private sectors....
from 1980 to 1989. In 1990, Liebman became general counsel for the International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers
International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers
The International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers is a labor union in the United States and Canada which represents bricklayers, pointers/cleaners/caulkers, stone and marble masons, cement masons, plasterers, tilesetters, terrazzo and mosaic workers...
, a position she held for three years.
Federal executive service
Liebman returned to federal service in 1994, becoming Special Assistant to the Director of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS). During this time, she served on the Mediator Task Force on the Future of FMCS, a group established to recommend a vision and strategic plan for the FMCS. In 1994, she was appointed to a three-person panel by the National Mediation BoardNational Mediation Board
The National Mediation Board is an independent agency of the United States government that coordinates labor-management relations within the U.S...
, and helped resolve the 1994–95 Major League Baseball strike in the U.S. and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. She was promoted to Deputy Director of the FMCS in 1995 and served for two years in that position. As Deputy Director, Liebman oversaw the agency's operations; supervised the heads of the alternative dispute resolution
Alternative dispute resolution
Alternative Dispute Resolution includes dispute resolution processes and techniques that act as a means for disagreeing parties to come to an agreement short of litigation. ADR basically is an alternative to a formal court hearing or litigation...
, arbitration
Arbitration
Arbitration, a form of alternative dispute resolution , is a legal technique for the resolution of disputes outside the courts, where the parties to a dispute refer it to one or more persons , by whose decision they agree to be bound...
, international affairs, and labor-management cooperation grants divisions; and provided expertise and advice to the Director regarding major labor disputes.
President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
appointed Liebman as a Member of the NLRB in October 1997, and the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
confirmed
Advice and consent
Advice and consent is an English phrase frequently used in enacting formulae of bills and in other legal or constitutional contexts, describing a situation in which the executive branch of a government enacts something previously approved of by the legislative branch.-General:The expression is...
her on November 14. She was reappointed by President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
in December 2002. President Bush re-appointed her a third time in August 2006 for a term that will expire in August 2011. Liebman often found herself in the minority on the NLRB from 2001 to 2008, as the Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
-appointed majority overruled a number of precedents and made a number of policy decisions that appeared to favor employers. After a November 2007 protest by labor unions in front of the NLRB's headquarters (during which unions demanded the Board be abolished), Liebman became even more outspoken, arguing that the Board had made "some rather dramatic shifts in
NLRB Chair
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
designated Liebman to be the NLRB's Chair. She was the second woman to hold the position in the in the board's 78 year history. During her first year as Chair, Liebman confronted a five-member Board which only had two members. Since three members' terms expired in December 2007, the NLRB has operated with just two members—Liebman and Member Peter Schaumber. President George W. Bush refused to make some nominations to the Board and Senate Democrats
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
refused to confirm others. Just before the Board lost a quorum, the five Members agreed to delegate their authority to a three-person panel (as provided for by the National Labor Relations Act
National Labor Relations Act
The National Labor Relations Act or Wagner Act , is a 1935 United States federal law that limits the means with which employers may react to workers in the private sector who create labor unions , engage in collective bargaining, and take part in strikes and other forms of concerted activity in...
). Only two of the members of the panel (Liebman and Schaumber) would remain on the Board, but the Board concluded that these two members would constitute a quorum
Quorum
A quorum is the minimum number of members of a deliberative assembly necessary to conduct the business of that group...
of the panel and thus could make decisions on behalf of the entire Board. Liebman and Schaumber informally agreed to decide only those cases which were noncontroversial (in their view), and issued more than 400 decisions between January 2008 and September 2009. In April 2009, President Obama nominated Craig Becker (Associate General Counsel of the Service Employees International Union
Service Employees International Union
Service Employees International Union is a labor union representing about 1.8 million workers in over 100 occupations in the United States , and Canada...
), Mark Gaston Pearce (a member on the Industrial Board of Appeals, an agency of the New York State Department of Labor), and Brian Hayes (Republican Labor Policy Director for the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
The United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions generally considers matters relating to health, education, labor, and pensions...
) to fill the three empty seats on the NLRB. Meanwhile, the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals
United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:* District of Maine* District of Massachusetts...
, 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals...
, and 7th Circuit Court of Appeals
United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the courts in the following districts:* Central District of Illinois* Northern District of Illinois...
all upheld the two-member rump NLRB's authority to decide cases, while the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit known informally as the D.C. Circuit, is the federal appellate court for the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Appeals from the D.C. Circuit, as with all the U.S. Courts of Appeals, are heard on a...
did not. In September 2009, the Justice Department
United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...
asked the U.S. Supreme Court
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
to immediately hear arguments concerning the dispute, given the high stakes involved. The Supreme Court granted certiorari
Certiorari
Certiorari is a type of writ seeking judicial review, recognized in U.S., Roman, English, Philippine, and other law. Certiorari is the present passive infinitive of the Latin certiorare...
in October and agreed to decide the issue. In the spring of 2010, the Supreme Court ruled that the NLRB could have no quorum with just two members, likely invalidating hundreds of previous rulings made by Liebman and Schaumber. Becker's nomination appeared to fail on February 8, 2010, after Republican Senators (led by John McCain
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
) threatened to filibuster his nomination. President Obama said he would consider making recess appointment
Recess appointment
A recess appointment is the appointment, by the President of the United States, of a senior federal official while the U.S. Senate is in recess. The U.S. Constitution requires that the most senior federal officers must be confirmed by the Senate before assuming office, but while the Senate is in...
s to the NLRB due to the Senate's failure to move on any of the three nominations. True to his word, Obama on March 27, 2010 recess appointed both Becker and Pearce to the NLRB.
Since becoming Chair, Liebman has called for Congress to update and revise the National Labor Relations Act, which has not undergone any fundamental revisions since 1947. "It is unrealistic to expect fundamental change in labor because we are constrained by the law's statutory text, precedent, the review process and constant turnover of board members," she told a Congressional hearing in September 2009.
Liebman stepped down as chair of the NLRB and as a member of the board when her term expired on August 27, 2011. President Obama named Mark Gaston Pearce as her replacement as chair.