Musk's business empire expands again! SpaceX wins key legal battle as NLRB declares it lacks jurisdiction.

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) of the United States has dropped a legal battle against Elon Musk's SpaceX that has lasted for years and has explicitly stated that it will no longer intervene in future cases involving the company. Two years ago, the NLRB filed a lawsuit accusing the aerospace company of firing eight engineers for jointly releasing an open letter criticizing Musk. Now, the commission has announced the withdrawal of this lawsuit. In a letter to the lawyer representing the dismissed employees, the NLRB cited a recent opinion from another agency, the National Mediation Board (NMB), claiming that SpaceX engineers fall under the jurisdiction of the NMB, not the NLRB. NLRB Regional Director Danielle Pierce wrote in the letter, "Therefore, the NLRB has no jurisdiction over your company's employer, so we dismiss your charges." It is understood that the NMB is responsible for regulating companies like American Airlines Group Inc. (AAL.US) while the NLRB is responsible for regulating companies like Boeing Company (BA.US) and most other private sector employers. The dismissal of the case by the NLRB is undoubtedly a victory for SpaceX. This means that current and former employees of the company will have limited legal avenues if they allege retaliation in the future. Under federal law, employees under the jurisdiction of the NLRB, whether or not they are union members, have the right to participate in collective actions aimed at improving working conditions. Employees under the jurisdiction of the NMB are subject to a different law, which does not provide the same level of protection. One of the dismissed engineers, Paige Holland Thielen, said, "The current legal system is malfunctioning and failing to fulfill its responsibility to protect workers. I think this portends worse things to come - the NLRB is being gradually weakened." An NLRB spokesperson declined to comment. SpaceX, which has consistently denied any wrongdoing, did not immediately respond to inquiries. In response to a lawsuit filed by the NLRB in 2024, SpaceX countersued the agency, alleging that its organizational structure was unconstitutional. This countersuit prompted the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit to issue an injunction, suspending the NLRB's proceedings against SpaceX. During President Biden's administration, NLRB General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo rejected SpaceX's argument that the NMB should handle the charges. After she was dismissed by the current president in January of last year, SpaceX once again requested NLRB to review the jurisdictional issue. In April 2025, the NLRB General Counsel's office announced that, to "facilitate a resolution of the dispute with SpaceX," it had decided to seek the opinion of the NMB on the jurisdictional issue. The dismissed engineers had argued that SpaceX should not be under the jurisdiction of the NMB because the US Congress has never granted the agency authority to regulate the commercial space transportation sector, and unlike airlines that serve the public, SpaceX's spaceflight services are only available to "carefully selected customers." However, the opinion issued by the NMB on January 14 supported SpaceX's claim, stating that the company falls under its jurisdiction because "space transportation includes aviation flight segments to outer space" and anyone can apply for space travel services by emailing the company through its official website. In December 2025, the NLRB also dismissed another lawsuit against SpaceX filed during the Biden administration. This lawsuit had alleged that some provisions in SpaceX's separation and arbitration agreements, including confidentiality clauses, were illegally coercive. While the withdrawal of the lawsuit by the NLRB may bring an end to related lawsuits filed by SpaceX, the constitutionality of the commission still faces other challenges. Since SpaceX filed its lawsuit in 2024, several companies, including Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN.US), have also filed similar lawsuits, and many of these cases are still pending in US courts. The dismissed engineers have also filed lawsuits against SpaceX and Musk for sexual harassment and retaliation under California law. The lawsuits mention that some plaintiffs have experienced harassment from colleagues that "mimics Musk's style of posting on social media," leading to a "highly hostile and intolerable work environment." Previously, a lower court refused to transfer this case to arbitration. In December 2025, SpaceX filed an application with the federal appellate court, seeking to compel the case to be included in the arbitration process.