OnLabor

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Author:Alisha Jarwala

Alisha Jarwala is a student at Harvard Law School and a member of the Labor and Employment Lab.

Collective Action Notice Requirements: The Next Hurdle in the Arbitration Fight

Apr 30, 2020 Alisha Jarwala

Following the Supreme Court’s decision in Epic Systems Corp v. Lewis, which upheld employer use of class and collective action waivers, plaintiffs’ lawyers have turned to filing hundreds or thousands of simultaneous individual arbitrations against employers. This strategy can pressure companies to change arbitration policies or to settle claims, because large numbers of individual arbitrations […]

Fighting Workplace Hairstyle Discrimination: An Explainer

Mar 12, 2020 Alisha Jarwala

In 2010, Chastity Jones applied for a customer service job at Catastrophe Management Solutions. Jones, who is African American, was selected for an interview, and she arrived at the office dressed in a business suit and wearing her hair in short dreadlocks. Jones was hired. Minutes later, her job offer was rescinded after she refused […]

Razak v. Uber: The Third Circuit Addresses Driver Classification

Mar 4, 2020 Alisha Jarwala

On March 3, the Third Circuit vacated and remanded a district court ruling that UberBlack drivers are independent contractors and not employees. The unanimous opinion points to disputed factual issues that are key to determining worker classification and highlights areas where a reasonable juror could side with drivers. This is the first court of appeals […]

February 19, 2020
News & Commentary

Alisha Jarwala

Yesterday, Kickstarter employees voted to unionize, becoming the first well-known technology company to do so. The New York Times reports that the employees will be affiliated with the Office and Professional Employees International Union and will begin contract negotiations over equal pay and hiring practices. Kickstarter’s union drive began last year, drawing widespread attention when […]

February 5, 2020
News & Commentary

Alisha Jarwala

Attorneys for five news outlets have asked the Department of Labor to withdraw its plan to restrict journalists from accessing economic reports in advance of publication. In January, the DOL announced that it would ban computers from the secure room where journalists have traditionally been given early access to economic data, including nationwide employment figures. […]

January 28, 2020
News & Commentary

Alisha Jarwala

Chipotle has been fined $1.3 million for child labor violations in Massachusetts. Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey announced the settlement on Monday, noting that the chain was responsible for an estimated 13,253 child labor violations. The fine is the largest child labor penalty ever issued by Massachusetts. The Boston Globe reports that the total settlement […]

January 8, 2020
News & Commentary

Alisha Jarwala

The New York Times reports that the American Federation of Musicians and Employers’ Pension Fund—the largest musicians’ pension plan in the United States—is seeking to cut benefits that have already been earned by thousands of musicians to prevent the plan from running out of money. The plan covers over 50,000 people, including Broadway musicians, orchestra […]

December 11, 2019
News & Commentary

Alisha Jarwala

Yesterday, Sejal wrote about how House Democrats and the Trump Administration are about to agree on a trade deal, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), which the President views as a replacement for NAFTA. Bloomberg reports that while AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka is on board—which was key to Democratic support for the deal—not all unions agree. […]

December 9, 2019
News & Commentary

Alisha Jarwala

Less than a year after Amazon dropped its plans to build a second headquarters in New York City, the company has signed a lease for 335,000 of office space in Hudson Yards, on Manhattan’s west side. The office will have around 1,500 employees. Amazon is taking the space without any tax credits or inducements from […]

November 27, 2019
News & Commentary

Alisha Jarwala

It’s a big news week for Amazon. First, the New York Times published a feature on the grassroots alliance developing against the company. Athena, a new coalition made up of three dozen grassroots groups, is trying to unify resistance to Amazon that is beginning to form across the country. Athena’s member organizations include the Awood […]

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OnLabor

Law. Workers. Organizing.

OnLabor is a blog devoted to workers, unions, and their politics. We interpret our subject broadly to include the current crisis in the traditional union movement (why union decline is happening and what it means for our society); the new and contested forms of worker organization that are filling the labor union gap; how work ought to be structured and managed; how workers ought to be represented and compensated; and the appropriate role of government — all three branches — in each of these issues.

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Collective Action Notice Requirements: The Next Hurdle in the Arbitration Fight

Fighting Workplace Hairstyle Discrimination: An Explainer

Razak v. Uber: The Third Circuit Addresses Driver Classification

February 19, 2020

February 5, 2020

January 28, 2020

January 8, 2020

December 11, 2019

December 9, 2019

November 27, 2019