BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR: AN ANALYSIS OF THE US SUPREME COURT'S DECISION IN PENN PLAZA LLC V PYETT

In Penn Plaza LLC v. Pyett, the US Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, held that parties governed by the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) can agree to require employees to arbitrate workplace discrimination claims arising under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). The only proscription imposed by the Court is that the agreement to arbitrate such claims be explicitly stated in clear and unmistakable language. Reversing the decision of the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, which had affirmed the district court's holding, Justice Clarence Thomas' majority opinion determined that arbitration of employment-related ADEA claims is a mandatory subject of bargaining under the NLRA and that the ADEA did not remove grievances involving such claims from the NLRA's broad sweep. Details of the case are presented.