Law Commons^™

The Audacity Of Protecting Racist Speech Under The National Labor Relations Act, Michael Z. Green

Michael Z. Green

This Article, written for a symposium hosted by the University of Chicago Legal Forum on the Disruptive Workplace, analyzes the most recent failures of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to determine a thoughtful and balanced approach in addressing racist speech. Imagine two employees in the private sector workplace are discussing the possibility of selecting a union to represent their interests regarding wages and working conditions. During this conversation, a black employee notes the importance of using their collective voices to improve working conditions and compares the activity of selecting a union with the Black Lives Matter protests aimed at …

Can Nfl Players Obtain Judicial Review Of Arbitration Decisions On The Merits When A Typical Hourly Union Worker Cannot Obtain This Unusual Court Access?, Michael Z. Green, Kyle T. Carney

Michael Z. Green

Several recent court cases, brought on behalf of National Football League (NFL) players by their union, the NFL Players Association (NFLPA), have increased media and public attention to the challenges of labor arbitrator decisions in federal courts. The Supreme Court has established a body of federal common law that places a high premium on deferring to labor arbitrator decisions and counseling against judges deciding the merits of disputes covered by a collective bargaining agreement (CBA). A recent trend suggests federal judges have ignored this body of law and analyzed the merits of labor arbitration decisions in the NFL setting.

NFL …

Introduction: The Enduring Power Of Collective Rights, In Labor Law Stories, Catherine L. Fisk, Laura J. Cooper

Catherine Fisk

No abstract provided.

Inherently Discriminatory Conduct Revisited: Do We Know It When We See It?, Barbara J. Fick

Barbara J. Fick

"This article traces the development of the inherently discriminatory doctrine, proposes some guidelines for determining when employer conduct falls under the rubric of the inherently discriminatory doctrine, and analyzes two cases dealing with employer use of temporary replacements during offensive lockouts in light of the proposed guidelines."

Corporate Social Responsibility For Enforcement Of Labor Rights: Are There More Effective Alternatives?, Barbara Fick

Barbara J. Fick

This article addresses the concept of corporate social responsibility (hereinafter CSR) as it relates to labor rights. It considers the following issues: is the CSR model, as evidenced by the adoption of corporate codes of conduct, effective in protecting labor rights?; and is this model the best way to protect labor rights? These issues are examined from two perspectives: practical and philosophical. Lastly, some alternative enforcement mechanisms are considered and their respective advantages and disadvantages for purposes of ensuring labor rights are discussed.

The Nlrb As An Uberagency For The Evolving Workplace, Michael Z. Green

Michael Z. Green

In addressing legal issues regarding the relationships between employers and employees, one must navigate a complex maze of rights and remedies that govern the workplace. This Essay details several recent and important workplace disputes addressed by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) pursuant to Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). Section 7 protects a worker's right to pursue an activity for mutual aid or protection regarding wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment. The NLRB, a unique agency with its ultimate decisions determined by five members who primarily establish rules through adjudication rather than rule …

How The Nlrb's Light Still Shines On Anti-Discrimination Law Fifty Years After Title Vii, Michael Z. Green

Michael Z. Green

On July 2, 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Provisions in Title VII of that statute ("Title VII") created a ban on employment discrimination. Title VII specifically establishes that "it shall be unlawful for an employer to fail or refuse to hire, discharge, limit, segregate, classify, or otherwise discriminate against any individual, with respect to wages, privileges, and other terms of employment because of that individual's race, color, religion, sex, or national origin." As the passage of Title VII approaches its fiftieth anniversary, this Article explores what may be thought of as …

"Great Expectations" Defeated?: The Trajectory Of Collective Bargaining Regimes In Canada And The U.S. Post-Nafta, Eric Tucker

Eric M. Tucker

From the beginning of the free-trade era one contentious area has been the impact of trade liberalization on labor law. Opponents of NAFTA (and some supporters) predicted a regulatory race to the bottom (RTB) would ensue leading to increasingly deregulated labor markets. The result would be weaker collective bargaining laws, lower minimum standards, and a decline in the social wage. In recent years a number of scholars have examined the question in light of more than fifteen years experience under CUFTA and ten under NAFTA and there seems to be a growing consensus that, contrary to those 'great expectations', labor …

Global Laws, Local Lives: Impact Of The New Regionalism On Human Rights Compliance, Stephen J. Powell, Patricia Camino Pérez

Stephen Joseph Powell

Continuation of the brisk pace of international economic growth with its necessarily increased use of natural resources—often at unsustainable levels—and its higher levels of pollution—often at the cost of citizen health—combine with the rules of the global trading system to threaten human rights to health, to freedom from forced or child labor, to non-discrimination, to a fair wage, to a healthy environment, even to democratic governance and participation in the political process. As a result, in recent years a growing number of economists begrudgingly acknowledge the incontrovertible—although presently dysfunctional—linkage between trade and human rights and the need to integrate these …

Invisible No More: Domestic Workers Organizing In Massachusetts And Beyond, Natalicia Tracy, Tim Sieber, Susan Moir Scd

Tim Sieber

Domestic workers across the country are making it clear that, even in a difficult political environment, it is possible to make gains for low-wage workers. For the first time in many, many decades, domestic workers are finding ways to win. They are creat
ing policy change that will improve the lives of hundreds of thousands of workers in tangible and substantial ways. The 2014 Massachusetts Domestic Workers’ Bill of Rights is the most expansive codification of rights for this long-overlooked part of the labor force ever to be enacted. In one sense, there is nothing new about domestic workers organizing …

The Nba's 2011 Collectively Bargained Amnesty Clause-Exploring The Fundamentals, Adam Epstein, Kathryn Kisska-Schulze

Adam Epstein

The purpose of this article is to fundamentally introduce the amnesty clause, a relatively new provision in the labor and employment law discussions involving sport. The expression amnesty clause or amnesty provision is found in the 2011 NBA CBA. To date, academic references to the amnesty clause within the sport genre are virtually non-existent. The amnesty clause provides NBA teams a tool to release players from their contracts if they feel that the player turned out to be a bad investment, regardless of the reason. Additionally, by releasing a player under an amnesty clause provision, the team exercising the clause …

Mr. Dooley And Mr. Gallup: Public Opinion And Constitutional Change In The 1930s, Barry Cushman

Barry Cushman

Scholars interested in the development of political and constitutional culture during the 1930s sometimes draw inferences about popular preferences on various issues of social and economic policy from the results of presidential and congressional elections. A review of contemporary public opinion polls taken by George Gallup for the American Institute of Public Opinion and by Elmo Roper for the Fortune Magazine survey offers a more granular understanding of popular views on the public policy issues of the day. This article canvasses all of the public opinion polls taken by Gallup and Roper between 1935, when they began publishing their results, …

Survey Of Recent Developments In Indiana Law: Labor And Employment Law, Barbara J. Fick

Barbara J. Fick

This article examines developments in labor and employment law occuring shortly before its publicaiton in 1992. The article discusses cases revisiting the Frampton rule, addressing employee defamation suits against employers, employment discrimination, issues arising in public sector employment, wage statutes, unemployment compensation, and workers' compensation. It also discusses a state statute prohibiting employment discrimination based on employees' off-duty use of tobacco.

Landing Stable Employment: The Exploratory Study Of A Job Vs. Career, Valencia Tamir Johnson Dr.

Valencia T Johnson

Landing stable employment can be difficult and discouraging. Some employers want applicants that are searching for a “career”, and some employers are looking for applicants that want a “job”. Ask yourself, what is the difference between a job and a career? In simple terms, a job is short-term and a career is long-term. Applicants who seek a job would likely stay less than a year, as with a career, the candidate would likely stay more than a year or longer. This article provides a clear and concise overview of the exploratory study of landing a career or job.

A Post-Pyett Collective Bargaining Agreement To Arbitrate Statutory Discrimination Claims: What Is It Good For–Could It Be Absolutely Nothing Or Really Something?, Michael Z. Green

Michael Z. Green

No abstract provided.

Good Faith: Balancing The Right To Manage With The Right To Represent, Suzanne Darrow Kleinhaus

Suzanne Darrow Kleinhaus

No abstract provided.

Illegal Immigration And The American Labor Force: The Use Of "Soft" Data For Analysis, Vernon Briggs

Vernon M Briggs Jr

No abstract provided.

Illegal Immigration And The American Labor Force: The Use Of "Soft" Data For Analysis, Vernon Briggs

Vernon M Briggs Jr

No abstract provided.

Book Review: Capital And Its Discontents: Conversations With Radical Thinkers In A Time Of Tumult By Sasha Lilly (Pm Press, 2011), Nick J. Sciullo

Nick J. Sciullo

No abstract provided.

The Employee Free Act Choice: Economic Consequences And Political Implications, Peter Dreier

Peter Dreier

No abstract provided.

Riforma Fiscale E Redditi Di Lavoro Dipendente: Per Una Fiscalità Volta Verso Il Nuovo Millennio, Michele Faioli

Michele Faioli

No abstract provided.

Immigrant Workers And The Thirteenth Amendment, Maria Ontiveros

Maria L. Ontiveros

This chapter examines the treatment of immigrant workers through the lens of the Thirteenth Amendment. It examines how the intersection of labor and immigration laws impact immigrant workers in general, "guest workers" and undocumented immigrants. It argues that immigrant workers can be seen as a caste of nonwhite workers laboring beneath the floor for free labor in ways which violate the Thirteenth Amendment. Further, it suggests ways in which immigrant workers can use the Thirteenth Amendment to improve their situation and offers an analysis of how the Thirteenth Amendment can form a bridge for organizing between labor, civil rights, immigration …

Uneasy Terrain: The Impact Of Capital Mobility On Workers, Wages, And Union Organizing, Kate Bronfenbrenner

Kate Bronfenbrenner

In May 2000, the United States Trade Deficit Review Commission contracted with Cornell University to conduct a study updating Cornell’s previous research on the impact of plant closings and threats of plant closings on union organizing campaigns in the U.S. private sector. Through surveys, personal interviews, documentary evidence, and the use of electronic databases, the Cornell researchers were able to collect detailed data on the extent, nature, and impact of plant closings and plant closing threats for a random sample of more than 400 NLRP certification campaigns that took place between January 1, 1998 and December 31, 1999. By examining …

International Labor Standards, Soft Regulation, And National Government Roles, Sarosh C. Kuruvilla, Anil Verma

Sarosh Kuruvilla

[Excerpt] In this article, we briefly describe the different approaches to the regulation of international labor standards, and then argue for a new role for national governments based on soft rather than hard regulation approaches. We argue that this new role shows potential for significantly enhancing progress in international labor standards, since it enables governments to articulate a position without having to deal with the enforcement issues that hard regulation mandates. We justify this new role for governments based on the increasing use of soft regulation in the international arena. Of course, this approach is not without its own problems, …

Disparate Impact Under The Age Discrimination In Employment Act Of 1967, Michael Evan Gold

Michael Evan Gold

No abstract provided.

The Economic Costs And Benefits Of Self-Managed Teams Among Skilled Technicians, Rosemary Batt

Rosemary Batt

This paper estimates the economic costs and benefits of implementing teams among highly-skilled technicians in a large regional telecommunications company. It matches individual survey and objective performance data for 230 employees in matched pairs of traditionally-supervised and self-managed groups. Multivariate regressions with appropriate controls show that teams do the work of supervisors in 60-70% less time, reducing indirect labor costs by 75 percent per team. Objective measures of quality and labor productivity are unaffected. Team members receive additional overtime pay that represents a 4-5 percent annual wage premium, which may be viewed alternatively as a share in the productivity gains …