In today’s News and Commentary, a bipartisan group in Congress introduces a labor rights notification bill, New York’s new ban on credit checks in hiring takes effect, and Harvard’s graduate student workers go on strike.

A bipartisan, bicameral group of lawmakers unveiled the “Know Your Labor Rights Act” on Tuesday, legislation that would require all employers to post and maintain notices informing employees of their workplace rights. The bill, introduced by Sens. Josh Hawley (R-M.O.) and Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) and Reps. Riley Moore (R-W.V.) and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-W.A.), would also mandate that employers notify new hires of their rights upon hiring, with penalties imposed for noncompliance. Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien has backed the proposal, saying it would help put power back in workers’ hands. Hawley is also backing separate legislation to accelerate timelines for companies to negotiate initial collective bargaining agreements with newly unionized workers, a House version of which saw Rep. Donald Norcross (D-N.J.) file a discharge petition Monday to force a floor vote.

In New York, a new state law took effect barring most employers from using an individual’s credit history in hiring, pay, or promotion decisions. The law makes New York one of roughly a dozen states to prohibit employers from accessing or inquiring about job seekers’ debts, late payments, bankruptcies, and similar financial records. Limited exceptions exist for peace officers and certain federally regulated positions in the financial sector. The law is designed to ensure that workers are evaluated on job-related qualifications rather than personal financial circumstances, while also addressing well-documented disparate impacts on people of color, who disproportionately face systemic wealth gaps that can translate into lower credit scores. Although New York City passed similar restrictions a decade ago, the new statewide law extends those protections to workers across the state. As we have previously covered, research has consistently found no meaningful correlation between credit history and job performance, yet over half of employers continue to screen applicants’ credit. The law also extends to employment agencies and labor organizations.

Harvard’s graduate student union, HGSU-UAW, launched a strike after more than a year of contract negotiations with the University failed to produce an agreement. Graduate workers began picketing early Tuesday morning after a final Monday bargaining session yielded little movement on the core issues in dispute. The union has identified wages, non-citizen worker protections, and third-party arbitration in harassment and discrimination cases as its central demands. The union told members in an email Monday evening to expect to be on the picket line by 6 a.m. Tuesday. The strike halts teaching and research duties across the university. Union leaders signaled that the action could continue indefinitely, saying that only substantial progress toward a contract would prompt them to call it off. The walkout marks the third in HGSU-UAW’s history, following a five-week strike in 2019 and a three-day strike in 2021.