The case stems from former UWM underwriter Christopher Dennis, who filed a discrimination claim against the company over its refusal to allow him to work from home because he suffers from migraines. Dennis' attorney, Matthew Clark of Detroit-based Gregory, Moore, Brooks & Clark, P.C., filed the NLRB charge last June after finding "jaw-dropping" requirements of employees in the UWM labor agreement, and agency investigators agreed in picking up the charges last year.
"I'd imagine this is very widespread, and I'd imagine we have probably thousands of these same agreements," said Clark. "And some of the things in there, they're pretty severe, and in my opinion, should be illegal."
One of the major violations, Clark suggested, is a non-disparagement clause preventing negative discussion about the company. UWM is monitoring anonymous posts on a Reddit forum dedicated for discussion about the lender's workplace, Clark said. The attorney posted outreach to other UWM employees on the forum, a move UWM called in a letter to the NLRB "beneath the profession." Clark said the NLRB gave him the go-ahead to post about the case on Reddit.
"They're acting really aggressively to a lawyer, that is, to me as an attorney, I can only imagine what sort of pressure the employees are under and why they might be scared to do exactly the things that they've protected under the law to be able to do," he said.
UWM in a statement said it doesn't comment on pending legal matters, and did not answer additional questions including whether it monitors employees' social media use. The NLRB didn't provide a comment to National Mortgage News, only referring to the trial scheduled for July 25 in Detroit.
The NLRB case is another sore spot for the massive lender, which came under fire last month after a
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The clauses the NLRB maintains are overly broad include lengthy rules around return of company property and information; waiving the right to a trial over statutory claims; and the aforementioned non-disparagement and social media use requirements.
The NLRB wants UWM to rescind all employee agreements that were executed, enforced or in effect at any time since Dec. 21, 2021 and to make whole current and former employees who suffered financial loss due to any discipline stemming from the agreements. It's unclear whether any UWM employees were terminated or penalized for violating the conduct.
Attorneys for UWM responded to the agency on April 11, stating the NLRB's suggested edits to its employment agreement were overly broad and suggested their own changes.
"UWM has no interest in negotiating against itself and it is unwilling to provide another settlement offer at this time," wrote DeAndre' Harris of Grand Rapids, Michigan-based Warner Norcross and Judd, LLP, on behalf of UWM. Harris didn't respond to a request for comment last week.
The NLRB's July trial would resemble a civil or criminal hearing including witnesses, expert testimony and evidence presentations, headed by a specialized administrative law judge. Clark said he doesn't anticipate any monetary damages for Dennis should the NLRB prevail.
Dennis' confidential discrimination arbitration claim remains in the discovery phase. His employment agreement gave him a six-month window to file a claim, which in Michigan wasn't illegal for UWM to mandate, Clark said. The former mortgage underwriter has since found another job "more sensitive to his medical condition," according to the attorney.
The Reddit forum includes posts by anonymous users mostly discussing poor workplace conditions at UWM, and links to coverage about the lender from various news sources. UWM's complaint to the NLRB about Clark's Reddit post confirmed its monitoring of the forum, Clark said.
"They've accused me of acting beneath the profession and violating professional rules of conduct for exactly the issues that we're concerned about for telling employees that their rights are being violated, which is kind of ironic," he said.
The company also remains locked in a legal battle with a California mortgage broker
The industry's leading wholesale originator
