Court Returns Home Depot Case, Narrowly Upholds Dress Code Limits

The Eighth Circuit's November 6 opinion, analyzed in a legal commentary published November 19, 2025, returned a high profile labor case to the National Labor Relations Board for further consideration while undercutting the board's earlier finding against Home Depot. The NLRB had concluded that disciplining an associate for refusing to remove "BLM" from an apron violated federal labor law. The federal appeals court vacated that order and remanded the matter, saying the company's context based defense warranted a closer look.

The court credited Home Depot's argument that unique local circumstances at the Minneapolis area store, including its proximity to the location where George Floyd died and the unrest that followed, could justify a narrowly drawn restriction on political messaging on aprons that face customers. The decision framed the issue as one of context, noting that time, place and manner may matter when a workplace seeks to limit expressive activity that could affect customers and operations. The opinion stressed that any restriction must be narrowly tailored and consistently enforced across the workforce.

Legal observers who commented on the court opinion noted that it emphasizes uniform application of dress code and uniform policies. Because the case will return to the NLRB, the board must revisit whether Home Depot's policy and its enforcement comport with federal protections for concerted activity and political expression. The Eighth Circuit also cautioned that its ruling turned on the specific facts of the Minneapolis store and is not a general license for employers to prohibit political expression across the board.

For associates and hourly employees, the decision has immediate implications for apron customization and workplace expression. The ruling suggests that employers may be able to restrict visible political messages in customer facing settings under certain conditions, but that such rules will be judged against whether they are applied evenly and whether they are no broader than necessary. The possibility of different outcomes in different locales means workers and managers may face uncertainty until the NLRB issues further guidance or resolves the case on remand.

Human resources leaders and store managers at Home Depot and other retailers are likely to review uniform and dress code policies, and to clarify enforcement practices. Consistent enforcement and clear guidance to employees will be critical to avoid new unfair labor practice allegations. The case highlights the tension between employee expression protected by labor law and employer interests in regulating customer facing appearances, and it will bear watching as the NLRB reevaluates the matter. The analysis first appeared on JD Supra in a post by McNees on November 19, 2025.