The Wall Street Journal reports that David Weil, President Obama’s nominee to head the Labor Department’s Wage and Hour division, won the Senate labor committee’s approval in a party-line vote, “clearing the way for his expected confirmation by the full Senate.”
In the Los Angeles Times opinion pages, George Skelton argues that public sector unions should stop attacking management and “act more like they work for the public.” Skelton cites polling that shows unions’ approval ratings in California have fallen in the last three years. He attributes the decline to the public’s dissatisfaction over notable strikes (e.g. BART) and so-called “pension envy,” as “public employees pull down generous retirement benefits that private sector taxpayers began losing years ago.” He suggests that “2014 might be a good time to place a public pension reform initiative on the ballot [in California].”
A new report released by the IMF argues that most Americans who have left the labor force as a result of the Great Recession will return to the labor market as the economy improves. The report argues that the current U.S. labor force participation rate of 63%, one of the lowest levels observed since the 1970s, calls into question whether the falling unemployment rate is due to people rejoining the workforce. According to the Wall Street Journal Economic blog, the report is optimistic that that the participation rate will rise as the economy grows, and it argues that the Fed should “drive the jobless rate below its so-called natural rate,” which will “boost demand for workers and draw people back into the labor force more quickly.”
The San Francisco Chronicle reports that BART union leaders are dismayed over newly-appointed Board chairman Joel Keller’s proposal to prohibit strikes by public transportation workers. The article claims that Keller was convinced by the union’s weakening hand in negotiations with the city after the union staged two high-profile strikes in the last four months. As such a prohibition would require state legislation, Keller suggested an advisory ballot measure in BART’s three counties that would urge state legislators to consider a transit strike ban.
Finally, Al Jazeera America published a retrospective “The Year in Labor” piece, recapping everything from this year’s Wal-Mart controversies and fast food strikes to the AFL-CIO convention and emerging forms of labor organizing.
Daily News & Commentary
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September 17
A union argues the NLRB's quorum rule is unconstitutional; the California Building Trades back a state housing law; and Missouri proposes raising the bar for citizen ballot initiatives
September 16
In today’s news and commentary, the NLRB sues New York, a flight attendant sues United, and the Third Circuit considers the employment status of Uber drivers The NLRB sued New York to block a new law that would grant the state authority over private-sector labor disputes. As reported on recently by Finlay, the law, which […]
September 15
Unemployment claims rise; a federal court hands victory to government employees union; and employers fire workers over social media posts.
September 14
Workers at Boeing reject the company’s third contract proposal; NLRB Acting General Counsel William Cohen plans to sue New York over the state’s trigger bill; Air Canada flight attendants reject a tentative contract.
September 12
Zohran Mamdani calls on FIFA to end dynamic pricing for the World Cup; the San Francisco Office of Labor Standards Enforcement opens a probe into Scale AI’s labor practices; and union members organize immigration defense trainings.
September 11
California rideshare deal advances; Boeing reaches tentative agreement with union; FTC scrutinizes healthcare noncompetes.