OnLabor

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Author:Joe Ruckert

Joe Ruckert is a student at Harvard Law School and a member of the Labor and Employment Lab.

Progressive Federalism in the Wake of Janus

May 22, 2019 Joe Ruckert

When the Supreme Court decided Janus v. AFSCME last year, the five-justice majority invalidated key provisions of collective bargaining agreements governing millions of workers across twenty-two states. Specifically, the Court held that such agreements could not obligate non-consenting public-sector employees to pay “agency” or “fair share” fees to the unions which represented them and negotiated […]

Criminal Background Checks and Disparate Impact: An Argument for Reform

Apr 22, 2019 Joe Ruckert

Amazon is currently defending itself in a class action alleging racial discrimination. In 2016, the company implemented a stricter background check policy for subcontracted delivery drivers. As a result of the change, several existing drivers—many of whom were black and Latino—became ineligible for continued employment due to criminal offenses that had previously been overlooked. Amazon […]

Targeted Advertising and Age Discrimination: An Explainer

Apr 11, 2019 Joe Ruckert

In the age of social media, traditional help-wanted ads have become obsolete. Employers can reach more applicants by advertising for open positions on sites like Facebook than they ever could through newspapers, or even their digital equivalents (such as Craigslist). However, the massive numbers of social media users—approximately two billion on Facebook alone—also pose a […]

Employee Liability under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act: An Explainer

Mar 8, 2019 Joe Ruckert

Mike Miller planned to quit his job and begin working for his employer’s competitor. Before leaving, he downloaded confidential documents from his workstation. He later used those documents to benefit his new employer at the expense of his old employer. Accepting these allegations as true, did he violate a fiduciary duty? Yes. Did he breach […]

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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Progressive Federalism in the Wake of Janus

Criminal Background Checks and Disparate Impact: An Argument for Reform

Targeted Advertising and Age Discrimination: An Explainer

Employee Liability under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act: An Explainer