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].
There’s an interesting new study, from Wilma Liebman and David Doorey, of student attitudes about labor issues. The study is based on the authors’ poll of undergraduates in Canada and the United States. The sample sizes are, admittedly, small. But the results are intriguing. In my view, the most interesting outcomes were produced by a question on unions. From the survey:
2. Which statement best describes your attitude towards unions:
a. “Unions serve an important role in society and the economy, and they should be encouraged”
Canada: 75% USA: 51%
b. “Unions prevent companies from being competitive and contribute little to the
betterment of society and, therefore, should not be encouraged.”
Canada: 4% USA: 21%
c. “Unions once served an important function, but they are no longer necessary
because employers are now fairer and there are better legal protections for
workers”
Canada: 22% USA: 28%
On his blog, Doorey summarizes other results this way:
Students in both classes were very supportive of minimum wage legislation. A larger segment of American students (13% versus 2%), opposed minimum wage legislation as a harmful interference in the free operation of labor markets.
. . . .
Interestingly, there was a noticeable variance of opinion on income inequality. Close to a third (29%) of American students responded that income inequality is not a cause of concern, and simply reflects the proper functioning of free markets, which reward hard work and skill. Only 11% of Canadian students believed that.
A third of the Canadian students responded that income inequality is a cause for concern,and that governments should promote more collective bargaining to enable workers to bargain higher wages. Only 15% of Americans chose this option. An almost identical amount of students in both countries (57% in the US, 56% in Canada) responded that income inequality is a cause of concern, and that governments should be encouraging a broader distribution of wealth through means other than promoting unionization.
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October 6
Economic effects of California’s $20 minimum wage; weak enforcement of Florida's minimum wage; resurgence of the the Norris-LaGuardia Act
October 4
In today’s News & Commentary, dockworkers headline strikes across the United States, student unions file labor complaints related to campus activism, and the firefighters union declines to issue an endorsement in the presidential election. Dockworkers reached a tentative agreement with the United States Maritime Alliance yesterday. The workers won a 62% wage increase over the […]
October 3
Vice President Kamala Harris announces support for port workers and NLRB issues complaint against Amazon based on the company's joint employer status over its drivers.
October 2
In today’s news and commentary: the White House backs port workers strike, the NLRB accuses Apple of unlawful workplace rules, and the U.S. Department of Labor announces collaboration with New Jersey Department of Labor to combat child labor. President Joe Biden has urged U.S. port employers to improve their offers to striking dockworkers, lending high-profile […]
October 1
Port workers begin strike; Amazon loses fight to keep NLRB lawsuit in Texas; Teamsters reach tentative agreement with Hertz; construction industry advocates for mental health training.
September 30
Industry and ports brace for impact of the Longshoremen’s strike as their contract expires tonight; the Department of Labor introduced a new tool designed to guide employers in inclusive use of AI hiring technologies; the Labor Movement mourns the passing of labor leader Bill Lucy