“Vulgar and inappropriate” Facebook Post was Protected Speech

In a decision dated April 21, 2017, the Second Circuit upheld the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) finding that an employee’s Facebook post, although “vulgar and inappropriate,” did  not exceed the National Labor Relations Act’s (NLRA) protection.  The expletive laden post occurred two days before a union election.  The Court agreed with the NLRB that the post constituted protected activity and that the termination of the employee constituted unlawful retaliation.  See National Labor Relations Board v. Pier Sixty, LLC, No. 15-1841 (April 21, 2017).