TESTIMONY OF CYRUS MEHRI BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY UNITED STATES SENATE SEPTEMBER 23, 2008 [View Hearing Webcast] [Read Part I] BATTLING DISCRIMINATION IN THE WORKPLACE: THE LONG HARD JOURNEY FOR WORKERS During the last 15 years, I have interviewed hundreds of employees in dozens of companies. Invariably, they contact counsel as a last …
Barriers to Justice: Examining Equal Pay for Equal Work (Part II) Read More »
A significant new frontier in the employment discrimination field is finding ways to protect employees who are fired, denied a promotion, or harassed just for being lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT). Already, 12 states and the District of Columbia prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation as well as gender identity and expression. (Another eight states have …
Developments in Workplace Protections for LGBT Employees Read More »
The fun continued unabated at TodaysWorkplace.org, as we continued our Take Back Labor Day project for Week 3: September 15-19, 2008. Although we featured fewer posts this week than the previous two weeks, we still tackled many provocative issues that are frequently in the headlines. On Monday, September 15, we kicked off the week with …
Worsening unemployment. Millions of home foreclosures. Two-income households unable to support families. America’s workers are facing economic disasters so severe, even the national media is paying attention. But the current crisis has long roots. America’s working families have been suffering through what is now a generation-long stagnation of wages and rising economic insecurity. Steps must …
Working Harder for Less Mocks the American Dream Read More »
In 1932, at the middle of the Great Depression, President Franklin Roosevelt swept into office with the promise of bold economic reforms. Although conservative critics of the day said that it wouldn’t work–the same ones that watched the economy collapse and did nothing–policies implemented in The New Deal stabilized the banking system, cut skyrocketing unemployment, …
In 2007, hundreds of gay-rights organizations from across the country signed a statement opposing the first gay-rights bill ever approved by a house of Congress. Why? Because the bill, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), prohibited job discrimination based on sexual orientation, but not discrimination based on gender identity/expression. After the House voted to approve ENDA …
A large and growing number of employers across the United States require current and prospective employees to sign away core constitutional rights as a condition of getting a job. “If you want to work here,” millions of employees are told, “you have to agree that any disputes you have with us–even if we cheat you, …
It goes without saying that a healthy worker is a better, more productive worker. Sickness not only cuts into productivity by taking an employee out of the office, but chronic, untreated conditions can sap energy, happiness, and ability, resulting in a less productive environment for both the employee and the employer. This is why in …
Mr. and Mrs. Ortega* worked and lived in the D.C. home of Ms. Glasson* for the last 7 years. The Ortegas each worked an average of 60 hours a week, cooking, cleaning, and driving Ms. Glasson around town. Last fall, they were fired without notice, given two weeks severance and immediately evicted from Ms. Glasson’s …
Domestic Workers Lack Adequate Legal Protections Read More »
For this week’s installment of our Take Back Labor Day project, we had ten new posts representing the incredible quality and diversity that exists among those who think and write about workplace issues. With a wide variety of topics, including domestic workers, CEO pay, and workplace flexibility, and the representation of powerhouse organizations such as …
Madeline Messa is a 3L at Syracuse University College of Law. She graduated from Penn State with a degree in journalism. With her legal research and writing for Workplace Fairness, she strives to equip people with the information they need to be their own best advocate.
