The latest new regulation to roll off the assembly line and hit the remodeling industry these days is one which seems almost impossible the first time you see it – but unfortunately, it really is true.

Starting November 14, 2011, any remodeler, home improver, or manufacturer with a gross annual volume of business of $500,000 or more will be required to post an 11 inch x 17 inch notice in each place where disclosures to employees are customarily posted.

The notice, titled “Notification of Employee Rights Under the National Labor Relations Act”, must be placed in a conspicuous location. What does the notice say? Well, as the title suggests, it generally informs your employees of their rights under the federal National Labor Relations Act. In other words, the notice helpfully informs employees of their right to act together to improve wages and working conditions, their right to strike, their right to form, join, and assist a union, and their right to bargain collectively with you – the employer.

Berenson LLP, in conjunction with the National Association of Professionally Accredited Contractors (NAPAC), as well as a host of other pro-business groups, has been lobbying Congressional representatives to intervene to reverse this rule. While the National Labor Relations Board does not have the legal authority to impose fines against a contractor for not posting the “Notification of Employee Rights Under the National Labor Relations Act” document, the failure to comply with this rule could, in theory, create a claim against the employer under state labor laws, and if an employer knowingly and willfully failed to post the notice, the failure could be considered evidence of unlawful motive in an unfair labor practice case involving other alleged violations of the National Labor Relations Act.