Fourth Circuit -- Ashland Facility Operations v. NLRB

Election results not tainted, as NAACP official was not an apparent agent of the union when racially inflected comments were made.

Comments were about working conditions at the facility and therefore not per se inflammatory.

Heightened scrutiny does not apply where racially based comments were made by a third party.  Circuit split flagged.

Comments were outside critical period of election anyway.

No  abuse of discretion in the ALJ's limitaiton of the subpoena duces tecum to documents relating to the critical period of the election.

Ashland Facility Operations v. NLRB