Washington, D.C. – Today, President Obama announced the recess appointments of Sharon Block, Terence F. Flynn, and Richard Griffin to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), which the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled needs three members to exercise its authority. Without these appointments, the NLRB would have been left with only two members and forced to shut down.

In response, American Rights at Work Executive Director Kimberly Freeman Brown issued the following statement:

“The President should be commended for moving swiftly to ensure quorum for the NLRB. Without a functioning Board, employers and employees alike would have been stuck in legal limbo on a range of critical issues—including the rights of certain workers to form unions and the appropriate use of social media to discuss workplace concerns. What’s more, unlawfully fired employees could have waited years before winning their jobs back or receiving backpay.

“Predictably, despite these concerns, corporate-backed politicians in Congress made it clear that their priority was shutting down the Board—not protecting the interests of workers or employers trying to play by the rules. It’s good news for the 99 percent that they didn’t succeed.”