Labor and Employment Law Commons^™

Reproductive Justice At Work: Employment Law After Dobbs V. Jackson Women’S Health Organization, Laura T. Kessler

Utah Law Faculty Scholarship

In June 2022, in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey, landmark decisions which held that the U.S. Constitution protected a right to abortion prior to fetal viability. Overnight, about 64 million American women of childbearing age potentially lost the right to decide what happens in their own bodies. In the two years since the decision, seventeen states have made most or all abortions illegal, with the fight over abortion still taking place in state and federal courts. Experts across fields have explored the decision's effects on health, economic …

It's Time For Employers To Address Menopause, Experts Say, Anne Cullen, Marcy Karin

UDC Law Faculty in the News

No abstract provided.

Women In Shareholder Activism, Sarah C. Haan

Seattle University Law Review

Even a cursory review of the history of American environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) shareholder activism reveals the presence of women leaders. This Article sketches some of this history and interrogates the role of women in the shareholder activism movement. That movement typically has involved claims by minority shareholders to corporate power; activists are nearly always on the margins of power, though minority shareholders may, collectively, represent a majority interest. This Article ascribes women’s leadership in shareholder activism to their longstanding position as outsiders to corporate organization. Women’s participation in shaping corporate policy—even from the margins—has provided women with …

Women, Retirement, And The Growing Gig Economy Workforce, Caroline Bruckner, Jonathan B. Forman

Georgia State University Law Review

Gig work—the selling or renting of labor, effort, skills, and time outside of traditional employment—is a long-standing feature of the U.S. economy. Today, millions of “online gig workers” sell goods and services, or rent rooms, houses, vehicles, and other assets using app-online and app-based platforms (for example, Uber, Lyft, Rover, DoorDash, eBay, Etsy, Postmates, VRBO, and Airbnb) to connect with customers. Millions more of “offline gig workers” run errands; walk dogs; care for children and the elderly; do housework, yardwork, and other occasional jobs; rent rooms; and sell goods at outdoor markets and roadside stands—without using online platforms to connect …

Miscarriage Of Justice: Early Pregnancy Loss And The Limits Of U.S. Employment Law, Laura T. Kessler

Utah Law Faculty Scholarship

This Article explores judicial responses to miscarriage under federal employment law in the United States. Miscarriage is an incredibly common experience. Of confirmed pregnancies, about fifteen percent will end in miscarriage; almost half of all women who have given birth have suffered a miscarriage. Yet this experience slips through the cracks of every major federal employment law in the United States.

The Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978, for example, defines sex discrimination to include discrimination on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions. The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 requires covered employers to provide employees with …

Reasonableness In Hostile Work Environment Cases After #Metoo, Danielle A. Bernstein

Michigan Journal of Gender & Law

The #MeToo movement, a global social response to sexual harassment in the workplace, has turned the traditional approach to sexual harassment on its head. Instead of shielding perpetrators and discrediting survivors, employers, the media, and the public have begun to shift from presuming the credibility of the perpetrator to presuming the credibility of the survivor. But this upending of the status quo has occurred almost entirely in the social sphere—and the legal system, where survivors of workplace sexual harassment can seek remedies for the abuse they have suffered, is proving much slower to adapt.

While our social presumptions are flipping …

Challenges In Bringing Gender Equity Into The Workplace: Addressing Common Concerns Women Have When Deciding To Hold Employers Accountable For Gender Discrimination, Siobhan Klassen

Journal of Race, Gender, and Ethnicity

No abstract provided.

Covid-19 And The Caregiving Crisis: The Rights Of Our Nation's Social Safety Net And A Doorway To Reform, Leanne Fuith, Susan Trombley

Faculty Scholarship

In March 2020, the United States declared a pandemic due to the global Covid-19 virus. Across the nation and within a matter of days, workplaces, schools, childcare, and eldercare facilities shuttered. People retreated to their homes to shelter-in-place and slow the spread of the virus for what would become a much longer time than most initially anticipated. Now, more than a year into the pandemic, many professional and personal lives have been upended and become inextricably intertwined. Work is now home, and home is now work. Work is completed at all times of day and well into the night. Children …

The Evolution Of Gender Equity From A Marxist And Existentialist Perspective, Alexandria Lopez

Journal of Race, Gender, and Ethnicity

No abstract provided.

Equitable Hiring Policy In Higher Education At The University Of Montana, Victoria Mckinley Bigelow, Kinsey Anderson

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

Higher Education; University of Montana; Equity; Hiring; University; College; Montana; Missoula; Public Administration; Organization; Missoula; Diversity; Women; Policy

Women And Men Graduates Of The University Of Michigan Law School: Career Patterns And Adjustments For Children, David L. Chambers

Bibliography of Research Using UMLS Alumni Survey Data

The University of Michigan Law School conducted mail surveys of classes of its alumni each year from 1966 and 2006. This memorandum builds upon the mail surveys conducted through 2006 and in particular survey questions asked about the sex of the respondent, the settings in which they have worked since law school, the hours they work and their earnings in their current settings, whether they have children and the various adjustments they have made in order to care for children, such as working part-time or leaving the work force altogether for periods of time. The memorandum has two principal focuses: …

Bias In The Boardroom: Implicit Bias In The Selection And Treatment Of Women Directors

Marquette Law Review

In light of the stagnation in growth of women directors on corporate boards, board diversity advocates and corporate leaders should look to the role implicit gender bias plays in the board nomination process and in challenges women directors face while serving on boards. Relevant stakeholders often overlook how implicit bias barriers prevent women from reaching the boardroom and persist as obstacles once women directors have earned their seats on the board. Incorporating social psychological research on implicit bias and recognized strategies to work around bias, such as objective assessments and guidelines, data analytics, and accountability mechanisms, this Article encourages companies …

Finishing The Job Best Practices For A Diverse Workforce In The Construction Industry V.8 Sept 2018, Susan Moir Scd

Labor Studies Faculty Publication Series

This manual is a work in progress. It is produced by the Policy Group on Tradeswomen’s Issues (PGTI), a regional collaboration of researchers, government agencies, unions, community-based organizations, developers and contractors committed to increasing access for women and people of color to good paying careers in the construction trades. Our goal is to make our shared efforts and experiences helpful to industry leaders who share our commitment. It is based on best practices developed on major projects that came close, met, or exceeded workforce hiring goals. This manual and additional resources are available online at on the PGTI website at …

One Text, Another Rendering Now: In The Wake Of Hively V. Ivy Tech Cmty. Coll. Of Ind., The Continuing Struggle To Define Sex Discrimination Under Title Vii, Kaitlyn Krall

DePaul Journal of Women, Gender and the Law

No abstract provided.

The Devil You Don’T Know: Implicit Bias Keeps Women In Their Place, Michele N. Struffolino

Pace Law Review

While men’s claims of gender bias in the family law system are acknowledged, this article focuses on how bias, whether implicit or explicit under the guise of unconscious attitudes or behavior, continues to place women at a systemic disadvantage. Although implicit bias also impacts outcomes in child abuse and neglect actions involving the state, the focus of this article is the impact of implicit bias in actions between women and men in the family courts, in particular those issues involved in the dissolution of the relationship and the family unit. First, the emergence of implicit social cognition theory will be …

Tik Tok: Time To Eradicate Sexual Assault In The Music Industry Through The Implied Covenant Of Good Faith And Fair Dealing, Chanel Chasanov

DePaul Journal of Women, Gender and the Law

No abstract provided.

Sex Harassment Training Must Change: The Case For Legal Incentives For Transformative Education And Prevention, Susan Bisom-Rapp

Faculty Scholarship

In the wake of the #MeToo moment, employers, legislators, and human resources professionals have defaulted to a familiar solution to what seems like an epidemic of workplace harassment: mandatory sex harassment training. The chosen antidote, however, begs an important question that this author posed over 15 years ago: Does sex harassment training actually prevent harassment? My review of the social science research in 2001 revealed no convincing evidence that sex harassment training curbs harassment. In fact, the scant research available indicated that training, as typically conducted in American workplaces, may backfire, triggering stereotypes about women and people of color, and …

Feminism And The Tournament, Jessica A. Clarke

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

Naomi Bishop, the protagonist of the 2016 film "Equity," is the rare "she-wolf of Wall Street."' At the beginning of the film, Bishop appears on a panel at an alumni event. She explains her career choices to the young women in the audience as follows: I like money. I do. I like numbers. I like negotiating. I love a challenge. Turning a no into a yes. But I really do like money. I like knowing that I have it. I grew up in a house where there was never enough. I was raised by a single mom with four kids. …

Lessons From Labor Feminists: Using Collective Action To Improve Conditions For Women Lawyers, Marion Burke

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

Lessons From The Fields: Female Farmworkers And The Law, Maria L. Ontiveros

Maine Law Review

In both the fields of labor law and gender studies, we learn the most from experience. The experience of workers coming together to demand equality and respect and the experience of women coming together to share their experiences has led to most of what we study in these fields. Unfortunately, too many times traditional legal doctrine does not fit these experiences. In those cases, we must struggle to change the law to be responsive to the lived experiences of women and workers. This Article explores the lived experiences of one particular group of workers—immigrant farmworking women in California. From their …

Customer Domination At Work: A New Paradigm For The Sexual Harassment Of Employees By Customers, Einat Albin

Michigan Journal of Gender & Law

This Article introduces a novel legal paradigm—customer domination at work—to address the sexual harassment of employees by customers. This new approach challenges the prevailing paradigm, which focuses on the employer-employee binary relationship. I show how, under current Title VII law, the prevailing paradigm leads to a weaker form of employer liability than other instances where employers are liable for the sexual harassment of their employees. The protection for workers is also limited. The same is true of two other legal regimes discussed in the Article: Germany and Britain. More importantly, I argue that the prevailing paradigm precludes a true understanding …

Women, Migration, And Prostitution In Europe: Not A Sex Work Story, Anna Zobnina

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

No abstract provided.

Recognizing Women's Rights At Work: Health And Women Workers In Global Supply Chains, Erika R. George, Candace D. Gibson, Rebecca Sewall, David Wofford

Faculty Scholarship

The Guiding Principles mandate that businesses respect the human fights enshrined in the International Bill of Human Rights and in the International Labour Organization (ILO)'s Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. Due diligence processes and risk impact assessments are the main recommended means for ensuring compliance with companies' commitments to respect international human fights. Because OSH as a conceptual framework and regulatory order is not sufficient to identify the risk of health fights violations to women workers, we argue companies should not anchor their due diligence and risk assessment in OSH conventions and settle for a check-the-box solution …

The Thirteenth Amendment At The Intersection Of Class And Gender: Robertson V. Baldwin’S Exclusion Of Infants, Lunatics, Women, And Seamen, James Gray Pope

Seattle University Law Review

In Robertson v. Baldwin, the Supreme Court held that merchant seamen under contract could be legally compelled to work notwithstanding the Thirteenth Amendment’s prohibition on slavery and involuntary servitude. According to the Court, seamen were “deficient in that full and intelligent responsibility for their acts which is accredited to ordinary adults,” and therefore could—along with children and wards—be deprived of liberty. Over the past few years, however, several courts have applied statutory bans on “involuntary servitude” and “forced labor” (a “species of involuntary servitude”) to protect women and children in domestic settings. These cases suggest that Robertson’s categorical exclusion is …

An Overture To Equality: Preventing Subconscious Sex And Gender Biases From Influencing Hiring Decisions, Christy Krawietz

Seattle University Law Review

In many industries, women are less likely than men to be hired, and research suggests that this is due to subconscious gender bias rather than meritorious difference. To combat this bias, some orchestras use gender-blind auditions to hire their musicians. Orchestral hopefuls sit behind a screen to play their pieces, and directors listen to determine whom they want to hire. Some orchestras require applicants to remove their shoes before walking onstage, as even the perceived sound of high heels can affect a director’s decision. Before instituting gender-blind auditions, the top five American orchestras had fewer than five percent women players. …

Lifetime Disadvantage, Susan Bisom-Rapp, Malcolm Sargeant

Faculty Scholarship

Lifetime Disadvantage, Discrimination and the Gendered Workforce fills a gap in the literature on discrimination and disadvantage suffered by women at work by focusing on the inadequacies of the current law and the need for a new holistic approach. Each stage of the working life cycle for women is examined with a critical consideration of how the law attempts to address the problems that inhibit women's labor force participation. By using their model of lifetime disadvantage, the authors show how the law adopts an incremental and disjointed approach to resolving the challenges, and argue that a more holistic orientation towards …

Millenial Feminisms: How The Newest Generation Of Lawyers May Change The Conversation About Gender Equality In The Workplace, Meghan M. Boone

University of Baltimore Law Review

Much has been written about the "Millennial generation" and how they are re-shaping the modem workplace, including the legal profession. This body of literature ranges from heralding the Millennial generation as the vanguard for a new age of optimistic, creative team-players, to decrying Millennials as technology-obsessed, entitled, and lazy. Because Millennials have only recently begun to enter the legal profession en masse, the question of how Millennials will change the modem legal profession is still an open one-although one that has already attracted considerable attention. Less attention, however, has been paid to how Millennials unique approach to their professional lives …

Using The Nfl As A Model? Considering Zero Tolerance In The Workplace For Batterers, Deseriee A. Kennedy

University of Baltimore Law Review

"Domestic abuse is a workplace issue. '

The impact of domestic violence can increasingly be felt in the workplace, and it can adversely affect the safety and productivity of employees. Legislators and employers have begun to recognize the effect of domestic violence on employment, and many have adopted policies to protect the interests of domestic violence survivors. This article suggests that wider adoption of domestic violence policies are needed and these policies should be broadened to directly address batterers in the workplace. The article argues that employer based sanctions would increase batterer accountability and workplace safety. It uses the newly …

Portlandia, Ridesharing, And Sex Discrimination, Ari Herbert

Michigan Law Review Online

This Essay discusses and assesses the legal hurdles that See Jane Go and SafeHer may face. Part I of this Essay explains how the plain text of Title VII and the pertinent Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) guideline can fairly be read either to allow or condemn See Jane Go and SafeHer’s hiring practices. Part II then highlights precedent that supports See Jane Go’s and SafeHer’s discriminatory driver–passenger practices. Part III concludes by arguing that the legal system ought to make room for apps like See Jane Go and SafeHer in the current framework.

Just Jobs, Anita Bernstein

University of Baltimore Law Review

Activists who pursue gender justice in the United States have always focused on work, both the paid and unpaid kind. In her magisterial Sex Equality, Catharine MacKinnon chose "Work" as her first section, or illustrative locus, in the chapter titled "Sex and Sexism."' At the workplace, MacKinnon wrote, begins "the mosttraveled terrain" of sex equality law.2 Unpaid work fills the waking hours of most women. Women's labor makes the domestic economies of nation-states possible, even though it continues almost entirely uncounted in measurements of national output.' Injustices in both categories of work, the paid and unpaid, buttress each other.4

Mindful …