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
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May 26
New York Times reaches an agreement with the NYT Guild; Governor Walz vetoes a ride-share workers’ protections bill; Bloomberg reports a slowdown at the DOL; workers at a Barnes & Noble, a Chicago museum, and an REI vote to unionize.
May 25
New York Times reporting covers the corporate anti-union campaigns; American Airlines pilots reach a preliminary agreement on a new contract; and the WGA strike continues.
May 23
In today’s News and Commentary, NLRB prosecutors filed a complaint against Amazon for violating federal labor laws, and resident physicians at Elmhurst Hospital in Queens, New York went on strike. A new complaint by NLRB prosecutors alleges that Amazon changed its policies around access to its warehouse in Staten Island, New York, and its policies around paid […]
May 22
In this weekend’s news: the Minnesota legislature passes a labor bill offering protections for ride-share drivers, Bandcamp employees elect a union, and a gig company in San Francisco settles misclassification suits. Following the passage of an omnibus labor bill on Tuesday, the Minnesota legislature passed a bill guaranteeing ride-share drivers a minimum wage and other […]
May 22
[email protected]: CNET writers push for union in light of AI concerns, and the FTC releases a policy statement on biometrics that may have implications for the use of biometrics in the workplace.
May 21
NLRB judge finds Starbucks manager unlawfully retaliated against lead organizer; Second Circuit skeptical that NYC just cause protections for fast food workers preempted by NLRA; NLRB GC brings case arguing college athletes protected by NLRA.