Labor - 29 USC Section 153

01/19/04

Sec. 153. National Labor Relations Board

(a) Creation, composition, appointment, and tenure; Chairman;
removal of members
The National Labor Relations Board (hereinafter called the
"Board") created by this subchapter prior to its amendment by the
Labor Management Relations Act, 1947 [29 U.S.C. 141 et seq.], is
continued as an agency of the United States, except that the Board
shall consist of five instead of three members, appointed by the
President by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. Of the
two additional members so provided for, one shall be appointed for
a term of five years and the other for a term of two years. Their
successors, and the successors of the other members, shall be
appointed for terms of five years each, excepting that any
individual chosen to fill a vacancy shall be appointed only for the
unexpired term of the member whom he shall succeed. The President
shall designate one member to serve as Chairman of the Board. Any
member of the Board may be removed by the President, upon notice
and hearing, for neglect of duty or malfeasance in office, but for
no other cause.
(b) Delegation of powers to members and regional directors; review
and stay of actions of regional directors; quorum; seal
The Board is authorized to delegate to any group of three or more
members any or all of the powers which it may itself exercise. The
Board is also authorized to delegate to its regional directors its
powers under section 159 of this title to determine the unit
appropriate for the purpose of collective bargaining, to
investigate and provide for hearings, and determine whether a
question of representation exists, and to direct an election or
take a secret ballot under subsection (c) or (e) of section 159 of
this title and certify the results thereof, except that upon the
filing of a request therefor with the Board by any interested
person, the Board may review any action of a regional director
delegated to him under this paragraph, but such a review shall not,
unless specifically ordered by the Board, operate as a stay of any
action taken by the regional director. A vacancy in the Board shall
not impair the right of the remaining members to exercise all of
the powers of the Board, and three members of the Board shall, at
all times, constitute a quorum of the Board, except that two
members shall constitute a quorum of any group designated pursuant
to the first sentence hereof. The Board shall have an official seal
which shall be judicially noticed.
(c) Annual reports to Congress and the President
The Board shall at the close of each fiscal year make a report in
writing to Congress and to the President summarizing significant
case activities and operations for that fiscal year.
(d) General Counsel; appointment and tenure; powers and duties;
vacancy
There shall be a General Counsel of the Board who shall be
appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of
the Senate, for a term of four years. The General Counsel of the
Board shall exercise general supervision over all attorneys
employed by the Board (other than administrative law judges and
legal assistants to Board members) and over the officers and
employees in the regional offices. He shall have final authority,
on behalf of the Board, in respect of the investigation of charges
and issuance of complaints under section 160 of this title, and in
respect of the prosecution of such complaints before the Board, and
shall have such other duties as the Board may prescribe or as may
be provided by law. In case of a vacancy in the office of the
General Counsel the President is authorized to designate the
officer or employee who shall act as General Counsel during such
vacancy, but no person or persons so designated shall so act (1)
for more than forty days when the Congress is in session unless a
nomination to fill such vacancy shall have been submitted to the
Senate, or (2) after the adjournment sine die of the session of the
Senate in which such nomination was submitted.

AMENDMENTS
1982 - Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 97-375 substituted "summarizing
significant case activities and operations for that fiscal year"
for "stating in detail the cases it has heard, the decisions it has
rendered, and an account of all moneys it has disbursed".
1975 - Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 93-608 struck out requirement that
report contain the names, salaries, and duties of all employees and
officers employed or supervised by the Board.
1959 - Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 86-257, Sec. 701(b), authorized the
Board to delegate to its regional directors its powers under
section 159 of this title to determine the unit appropriate for the
purpose of collective bargaining, to investigate and provide for
hearings, and determine whether a question of representation
exists, and to direct an election or take a secret ballot under
section 159(c) or 159(e) of this title and certify the results
thereof.
Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 86-257, Sec. 703, authorized the President
to designate the officer or employee who shall act as General
Counsel in the case of a vacancy in the office of the General
Counsel.
1947 - Act June 23, 1947, amended section generally by increasing
membership from three to five, delegating its powers and duties to
a quorum of any three members, and by appointing a General Counsel
and outlining his powers and duties.
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1959 AMENDMENT
Section 707 of title VII of Pub. L. 86-257 provided that: "The
amendments made by this title [amending this section and sections
158, 159, and 160 of this title] shall take effect sixty days after
the date of the enactment of this Act [Sept. 14, 1959] and no
provision of this title shall be deemed to make an unfair labor
practice, any act which is performed prior to such effective date
which did not constitute an unfair labor practice prior thereto."
TERMINATION OF REPORTING REQUIREMENTS
For termination, effective May 15, 2000, of provisions in subsec.
(c) of this section relating to making a report in writing to
Congress at the close of each fiscal year, see section 3003 of Pub.
L. 104-66, as amended, set out as a note under section 1113 of
Title 31, Money and Finance, and page 184 of House Document No.
103-7.

Last modified: April 16, 2006