Peter Morgan is a student at Harvard Law School.
In Today’s News and Commentary: Howard Schultz denied violating labor law, Florida’s anti-union bill passes the Senate, and screenwriters and journalists call for fair wages.
Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz testified at a Senate HELP committee hearing on Wednesday morning, as Jacqueline reported. HELP committee chairman Senator Bernie Sanders questioned Shultz about the hundreds of unfair labor practice charges that Starbucks employees have filed over the past 18 months. Schultz maintained that Starbucks has not broken the law. After a short recess the HELP committee reconvened in the afternoon to hear from a panel. The panel included a former and current Starbucks barista as well as HLS Professor of Practice and OnLabor Senior Contributor Sharon Block, who remarked that it is a “bedrock of our democracy that the law applies to everyone.”
Also on Wednesday, the Florida state senate passed a bill that could weaken public sector unions in the state. As Elyse and Michelle reported earlier this month, key provisions of the bill would require unions to maintain 60% membership levels and would end direct deduction of union dues. According to a 2017 analysis, Florida has a higher public sector union density as compared to the states of the neighboring Deep South.
Writers across the country and in two different industries are demanding fair wages. As Forbes reported earlier this month, the Writers Guild of America contract with the major Hollywood production companies will expire on May 1st. The Guild intends to secure screenwriters’ compensation that keeps up with industry changes. And on the East Coast, members of the New York Times’ workers’ union disrupted the Times’ newsroom to protest the second anniversary of their contract expiring. Per Times writer Liam Stack on Twitter, staff have not received a raise in three years.
Daily News & Commentary
Start your day with our roundup of the latest labor developments. See all
August 1
The Michigan Supreme Court grants heightened judicial scrutiny over employment contracts that shorten the limitations period for filing civil rights claims; the California Labor Commission gains new enforcement power over tip theft; and a new Florida law further empowers employers issuing noncompete agreements.
July 31
EEOC sued over trans rights enforcement; railroad union opposes railroad merger; suits against NLRB slow down.
July 30
In today’s news and commentary, the First Circuit will hear oral arguments on the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) revocation of parole grants for thousands of migrants; United Airlines’ flight attendants vote against a new labor contract; and the AFL-CIO files a complaint against a Trump Administrative Executive Order that strips the collective bargaining rights of the vast majority of federal workers.
July 29
The Trump administration released new guidelines for federal employers regarding religious expression in the workplace; the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers is suing former union president for repayment of mismanagement of union funds; Uber has criticized a new proposal requiring delivery workers to carry company-issued identification numbers.
July 28
Lower courts work out meaning of Muldrow; NLRB releases memos on recording and union salts.
July 27
In today’s news and commentary, Trump issues an EO on college sports, a second district court judge blocks the Department of Labor from winding down Job Corps, and Safeway workers in California reach a tentative agreement. On Thursday, President Trump announced an executive order titled “Saving College Sports,” which declared it common sense that “college […]