Benjamin Sachs is the Kestnbaum Professor of Labor and Industry at Harvard Law School and a leading expert in the field of labor law and labor relations. He is also faculty director of the Center for Labor and a Just Economy. Professor Sachs teaches courses in labor law, employment law, and law and social change, and his writing focuses on union organizing and unions in American politics. Prior to joining the Harvard faculty in 2008, Professor Sachs was the Joseph Goldstein Fellow at Yale Law School. From 2002-2006, he served as Assistant General Counsel of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) in Washington, D.C. Professor Sachs graduated from Yale Law School in 1998, and served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Stephen Reinhardt of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. His writing has appeared in the Harvard Law Review, the Yale Law Journal, the Columbia Law Review, the New York Times and elsewhere. Professor Sachs received the Yale Law School teaching award in 2007 and in 2013 received the Sacks-Freund Award for Teaching Excellence at Harvard Law School. He can be reached at [email protected].
Ben Levin, a frequent contributor to the blog, has a great new piece up at Time arguing that the President’s ban-the-box proposal, while cause for celebration, doesn’t go far enough. According to Ben, the proposal’s main limitations include the facts that, one, “the proposal would affect only federal employers, not private employers or state or local governments,” two, “it would affect only the initial application[, and e]mployers would still be free to inquire into an applicant’s history later in the application process,” (a point Aabid has stressed here), three, the “proposal wouldn’t affect the background rules of tort law that expose employers to liability if they hire (or fail to fire) individuals with criminal records,” and four, “the proposal doesn’t alter the massive web of licensing laws that prevent those with criminal records from working in a range of fields.”
As usual, insightful commentary from Ben. The piece is definitely worth a read.
Daily News & Commentary
Start your day with our roundup of the latest labor developments. See all
July 21
Fifth Circuit transfers an Anheuser-Busch NLRB case to the Eleventh Circuit; a new report makes the case for tripling union membership.
July 20
New York City weighs banning horse carriages despite union opposition; public defenders go on strike; cinema workers stage walkout.
July 17
Canadian wildfires endanger rail workers; 26 Meta employees allege targeted layoffs for those on paid leave; FIFPRO pushes for more rigorous heat protections for players.
July 16
Trump's NLRB nominee set for Senate vote, federal district court grants partial win on WARN Act claims, Brigham and Women's nurses return to work.
July 15
U.S. labor productivity climbs at its fastest pace in decades; a federal judge grants a preliminary injunction to anti-abortion groups challenging Michigan’s civil rights law; and Jackson, Mississippi’s bus workers walk off the job.
July 14
DOJ opens investigation of UAW president; LIUNA protests Pfizer building collapse; national park workers unionize