In the latest round of extreme workplace rulings, the National Labor Relations Board has found yet another reasonable employer work rule to violate the National Labor Relations Act. 
In this case, Whole Foods Market, Inc., the employer had implemented two “no recording” policies: one that prohibited employees from making audio or video recordings of company meetings without prior management approval or the consent of all parties to the conversation, and the other that prohibited employees from recording conversations without prior management approval.
The first policy stated that it was intended “to encourage open communication, free exchange of ideas, spontaneous and honest dialogue and an atmosphere of trust.” The second policy specifically explained that,
“The purpose of this policy is to eliminate a chilling effect on the expression of views that may exist when one person is concerned that his or her conversation with another is being secretly recorded. This concern can inhibit spontaneous and honest dialogue especially when sensitive or confidential matters are being discussed.”
That seems pretty rational, doesn’t it?