MON AM News: NLRB decision gives employers more leeway on disciplining worker misconduct; What can lawmakers do about proposed 765-kV transmission lines

September 28, 2026

— A recent decision by the National Labor Relations Board gives employers more flexibility to discipline workers for misconduct even when it’s linked with certain protected activities such as union organizing.

That’s according to an analysis by Milwaukee-based law firm Michael Best, which says employers have regained flexibility for dealing with “employee outbursts,” including “threatening, abusive, discriminatory, or otherwise inappropriate” conduct.

The NLRB last week restored a previously established legal framework, signaling a shift away from the board’s stance under the Biden administration, authors wrote. They noted the change from its previous more “employee-protective” approach to workplace conduct.

This prior approach generally allowed abusive and offensive outbursts to “go unchecked” if they were part of activities protected by Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act, which includes self-organizing and joining unions, per the law firm’s analysis.

Authors argue the latest decision “sets labor law back on a more reasonable course,” as employers can lawfully discipline their workers for inappropriate conduct if they would have done so regardless of whether the employee was engaged in protected activities.

“This decision represents the first overturn of Biden-Board precedent by the newly constituted Republican majority,” authors wrote. “It signals that more such decisions are likely on the horizon. The decision has important implications for workplace investigations, disciplinary decisions, and the enforcement of workplace conduct rules.”

Under the restored framework, the general counsel involved with a given case must first establish that the employee engaged in Section 7 activity, the employer knew of it, and the protected activity motivated the discipline.

If that’s demonstrated, then the burden shifts to the employer to prove it would have imposed the same discipline, even without the protected activity involved, due to the employee’s misconduct.

“As a practical matter, the inquiry now focuses less on whether the employee’s conduct retained the Act’s protection and more on whether the employer would have disciplined the employee regardless of any protected activity,” authors wrote.

Still, the NLRB decision doesn’t eliminate the risk of unfair labor practice liability, as employers still can’t discipline employees just because they engage in union activity or other protected activity, the analysis notes.

Authors urge businesses to ensure they’re applying workplace conduct rules consistently, while documenting their reasons for disciplinary actions and taking other measures to be sure they’re complying with the restored framework.

Meanwhile, employers should expect further changes in NLRB law now that the board has shown it’s willing to revisit Biden-era precedents, authors say. More reversals may be in store for election procedures, workplace policies, organizing rights and other areas in the coming months.

— Wisconsin elected officials from the local level up to Congress have been pushing back on a pair of extra-high-voltage transmission lines planned for western Wisconsin.

Developers are proposing to build two 765-kV transmission lines crossing Wisconsin’s Driftless area – the 190-mile BECI line, which would stretch west from Crawford County to south of Portage and then south toward Beloit; and the MariBell line, which would travel from southeast of Rochester, Minnesota and cross through Vernon and Crawford counties.

Both projects are being built as part of the Midcontinent Independent System Operator’s effort to build an extra-high voltage “backbone” across the Midwest.

Both lines would be markedly taller and larger than much of the state’s current transmission infrastructure.

Scores of county and municipal boards have approved resolutions opposing the planned 190-mile BECI line, while a smaller number have spoken up against the MariBell line.

A bipartisan group of state lawmakers and one member of Congress have asked the BECI line’s developers to delay the project; another group of lawmakers and a U.S. representative have asked the governor to block both projects. Both gubernatorial candidates have voiced opposition to the BECI line.

That decision, though, will ultimately lie not with elected officials but with appointed officials on the state’s Public Service Commission. PSC commissioners will review the 765-kV MariBell and BECI transmission lines when they’re submitted to regulators in the coming months.

The PSC supervises all of the state’s public utilities and is responsible for approving applications to build any large power-generation facility or high-voltage power line.

La Crosse-based Dairyland Power Cooperative and GridLiance Heartland – a subsidiary of Florida energy giant NextEra Energy – have said they will file a construction application for the MariBell line later this year.

BECI developer Midcontinent Grid Solutions, a joint venture between Ohio-based American Electric Power Company, Kansas and Missouri-based Evergy and Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary BHE Transmission, plans to file its application in early 2027.

After PSC staff review an application and deem it substantially complete, commissioners have 180 days to approve or reject a proposed project, with the option to extend that deadline by another 180 days.

Under state statute, commissioners will evaluate each transmission project based on factors like its impact on the environment and landscape, whether the transmission line follows existing transmission corridors when possible, and the benefits it poses to wholesale and retail customers in Wisconsin.

Midcontinent Grid Solutions will also have to separately receive authorization from the PSC to operate as a public utility in Wisconsin in order to operate its transmission line; it filed that application in June.

— On the latest WisPolitics-State Affairs “Capitol Chats” podcast, Sen. Howard Marklein floated legislative action to block the two extra high-voltage transmission lines.

“Long before I was in office, the legislation was passed that took the Legislature out of the control of these transmission line sitings, as well as wind and solar sitings. So it’s going to take legislation to go back to the previous time frame,” Marklein said.

Both the planned MariBell and BECI 765-kV lines are set to cross Marklein’s district in southwestern Wisconsin, and the Spring Green Republican has been among the state lawmakers who have spoken up in opposition to the projects in recent weeks.

Marklein’s Democratic challenger, Rep. Jenna Jacobson of Oregon, has also targeted him for not speaking up about the transmission lines sooner.

Marklein argued the governor could also seek to delay or block the lines by appointing new commissioners to the Public Service Commission.

“There may be an opportunity for a new PSC to take a good hard look at these proposals, and hopefully, if they can’t stop them, to at least delay them, at least make it as difficult as possible for the developers to put these things through,” Marklein said.

He said his constituents, particularly seniors, most often name property taxes when the senator asks them what issues are front of mind.

Marklein, who backed the failed $1.8 billion state surplus spending deal, said he still favors divvying the projected surplus – now close to $3 billion – into a school funding boost, property tax relief and income tax rebates.

“This is money that taxpayers paid into the state of Wisconsin in excess of what the state needed to operate, and so I believe some of that money ought to go back to taxpayers,” Marklein said. “But there’s some other needs, like we mentioned, with our property taxes and with school districts, that they could certainly use the help in the future.”

Listen to the episode here.

— Elephas Biosciences Corporation will test a therapy being developed by Italian firm Tes Pharma to treat a form of lung cancer, the Madison company announced.

The two businesses will collaborate to evaluate the investigational therapy TES-4207, designed to treat non-small cell lung cancer.

Elephas will use its “elive” oncology therapy testing platform to assess human tissue responses to the treatment, providing valuable data for later development. By preserving the “native tumor microenvironment” for human tissue samples of this type of cancer, the platform can directly measure how a patient may respond to the therapy.

“These insights can help inform clinical development and support a more precise approach to identifying groups most likely to benefit,” Erika von Euw, vice president of scientific affairs for Elephas, said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Tes Pharma Project Leader Franceso Greco said understanding how human tissue responds to TES-4207 “provides an important layer of information” to support its drug development program.

Greco says partnering with Elephas will “help us better understand the potential of TES-4207, alone and in combination with other therapies, as we determine the best path forward.”

See the release.

— A tobacco research center at UW-Madison has been awarded $11.1 million in federal money to develop treatment strategies for adult patients at community health centers.

The University of Wisconsin Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention is getting the five-year grant from the National Cancer Institute, funding efforts to partner with 16 community health centers in Wisconsin and Massachusetts.

Friday’s announcement notes about 22 million adults receive care at community health centers annually. These patients are more than twice as likely to smoke cigarettes than the general population, with 22% compared to 10%, respectively.

Researchers will develop and test tobacco use treatments for adult patients, leveraging the health centers’ existing programs to screen for tobacco use, help patients quit and track related data. They will also create new resources to raise awareness of free tobacco helplines for community health centers across the country.

The project is being led by UW-CTRI Director Dr. Hasmeena Kathuria and Danielle McCarthy, the center’s co-director of research. Other partners include Massachusetts-based Azara Healthcare, which will focus on outreach and tracking related efforts, and RVO Health, a national tobacco helpline operator.

See more on the center.

See the release.

— Wisconsin is getting a small payout from a $2.3 million multistate settlement with Labcorp following a data breach in 2019 that exposed the information of more than 16,000 state residents.

The state Department of Justice recently announced the settlement with the Laboratory Corporation of America, which is related to an investigation of a data breach at the company’s debt collector.

Retrieval-Masters Creditors Bureau — doing business as American Medical Collection Agency — potentially exposed personal information of more than 27.5 million Americans, including 10.2 million Labcorp patients, according to the state DOJ.

“This settlement ensures that, going forward, Labcorp will have stronger protections against this kind of incident in place,” Attorney General Josh Kaul said in a statement.

As part of the total payment going to states, Labcorp will pay $17,534 to Wisconsin.

See the release.

For more of the most relevant health care news, reports on groundbreaking research in Wisconsin, links to top stories and more, sign up today for the free daily Health Care Report from WisPolitics and WisBusiness.com.

Sign up here.

— The Wisconsin Technology Council next month will host a luncheon focused on how businesses outside of the state’s major metro areas are leveraging AI and other technologies.

The group is holding the panel discussion Oct. 15 at the WPS Powerhouse in Wausau, featuring views on practical uses of AI and other in tech in manufacturing, product development, business operations and other areas.

Panelists will include: Felix Gallo, founder of Towering Clouds in Wausau; Owen Jones, CEO and owner of Tommy Docks in Schofield; and Jen Nieuwenhuis Hardel, president and owner of REI Engineering in Wausau.

“Innovation is happening across Wisconsin, and AI is giving businesses new ways to solve problems and compete,” said Maggie Brickerman, president of the Wisconsin Technology Council.

See event details and register here.

See the release.

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