When Marty Walsh leaped straight from the top of a trade union federation to Boston City Hall in 2014, local businesses braced for the impact of a labor leader and his progressive policies. They had little to fear from the new mayor. The following year saw “arguably the biggest building boom in the history of …
Card-carrying union member Walsh, Biden’s Labor nominee, wins businesses’ respect Read More »
It may have been the biggest mislabeled celebration in American history. By midday Saturday, November 7, when the election was finally called, hordes of ecstatic people poured into the streets across the country, honking and cheering and weeping with joy. This was widely referred to as a celebration of President-elect Joe Biden. But it really wasn’t about …
sec•tor•al bar•gain•ing noun 1. a labor policy that enables unions to set standards for their whole industry, boosting their leveraging power “Sectoral bargaining could shift employers from competing based on who can pay their workers the least, to competing based on the quality of their services.” —Charlotte Garden, Professor, Seattle University School of Law Why can’t unions do “sectoral …
How to Boost Unions’ Power? Sectoral Bargaining. Read More »
Labor leaders are eyeing a Joe Biden victory in November as the start of a union revival, one with the potential to undo decades of policies that have diminished union influence, undermined the right to organize and exacerbated income inequality. And they’re planning on playing a central role. “It’s clear to me it’s going to …
Unions predict a Great Awakening during a Biden presidency Read More »
Here is the most fundamental quandary of unions in America: Polls show that 65% of Americans approve of unions, and half of workers say they would join a union. But only about 10% of workers are actually union members. In the yawning gap between those numbers lies the entire story of the American labor movement’s decline. The systematic decades-long assault on labor power …
A Bunch of Union Organizers Explain What’s Wrong with Unions Read More »
Oren Cass—conservative policy wonk, 2012 Mitt Romney advisor and executive director of the new think tank American Compass (which does not disclose its donors)—is a surprising candidate for labor law reformer. That is exactly why his recently launched project to build and define a “Conservative Future for the American Labor Movement” is drawing so much attention. In a founding statement titled “Conservatives Should Ensure Workers a Seat at the …
Is the Conservative Case for Organized Labor an Oxymoron? Read More »
If your stereotype of a union worker is a white guy in a hard hat, let’s take this Labor Day to change that in a big way. Here’s the reality: 46.2% of union workers are women, and 36.1% are people of color. Black workers are the most likely to be represented by a union. More than half of …
Let’s set the record straight on unions this Labor Day Read More »
We need millions of union jobs that are good for both workers and the climate. The renewable energy industry in the United States is booming. Prior to the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has put millions out of work, over 3 million people worked in clean energy?—?far more than those who worked in the fossil fuel industry. …
Why Every Job in the Renewable Energy Industry Must Be a Union Job Read More »
“Maybe these workers will start to understand the value they have for society, because for decades they’ve been told they have no value and that they’re replaceable,” one union official said. CHICAGO — Amazon warehouse workers in New York walked off the job to demand protection against Covid-19. A county judge in Illinois ordered a McDonald’s franchise …
Unions tap into burst of worker angst over coronavirus Read More »
Every year, Walmart stages a massive, multi-day meeting in Arkansas for the company’s shareholders, not far from the corporate headquarters of the world’s largest retail store. The company’s top executives deliver speeches, its board of directors hears various proposals regarding corporate behavior and governance, and special guests make surprise appearances to keep the masses entertained. …
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.
