Despite calls for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to slow its engines on rolling back the definition of joint employer, the agency appears steadfast in its determination to undo the Obama-era expansion of joint employer applicability. NLRB Chairman John Ring rejected a formal request he received from two democratic members of Congress to rescind the Board’s pending Notice of Proposed Rule-Making (NPRM) and “abide by its current joint employer standard articulated in Browning-Ferris.” The request came in the form of a January 8 letter from US Representatives Bobby Scott (D-VA) and Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) after the DC Circuit Court of Appeals issued a muddled decision upholding parts of the NLRB 2015 Browning-Ferris decision expanding the joint employer definition. In his response, Chairman Ring advised them that the Board plans to move forward with its notice and comment rule-making, defining it as “the best vehicle to address the uncertainty surrounding the joint-employer standard.” The proposed rule-making deadline for comments has been extended several times and is now scheduled to close on February 11 for rebuttal comments. It’s possible that deadline will be extended also with the shutdown.