Vivian Dong is a student at Harvard Law School.
The NLRB general counsel’s office has asked the NLRB to withdraw its February decision to vacate Hy-Brand, the decision that reversed Browning-Ferris and thereby made it harder for companies to be held jointly liable for the labor violations of their contractors and franchisees. The NLRB vacated Hy-Brand after the Board’s Inspector General determined that Board Member William Emanuel, as a former partner of a law firm involved in the Browning-Ferris litigation, should not have participated in the Hy-Brand deliberations. The NLRB is currently locked in a 2-2 partisan split. John Ring, partner at management-side law firm Morgan Lewis, is awaiting Senate confirmation for the fifth spot.
The Oklahoma teachers’ strike enters its second week today. Fifty-eight of the five hundred school districts will remain closed. The Oklahoma Education Association has demanded a $10,000 raise over the next three years as a condition for ending the strike, as well as more funding overall for education. OEA President Alicia Priest has specifically listed the state’s capital gains tax deduction and repeal of the hotel-motel tax bill as targets for revenue-raising for education. Only Mississippi and South Dakota pay their teachers less than Oklahoma.
China’s plans to impose harsh new tariffs on key U.S. agricultural products like soybeans, corn, wheat, and beef are putting many rural farmers at financial risk. The United States exports almost $20 billion a year in agricultural goods to China, including half of its annual soybean production. China plans to impose a 25% levy on soybeans. The agricultural tariffs came in response to President Trump’s new tariffs, which itself are part of a broader, escalating trade war between China and the United States. President Trump’s actions have created an opening for Democratic contenders in the Upper Midwest districts hardest hit by the tariffs. Democrats are criticizing the President’s actions and promising more stability for farmers.
The New York Times reports on the 10-year “baby window” the contributes to the pay gap between men and women. Research shows that married heterosexual couples make similar salaries early in their careers, but upon the birth of the couple’s first child, the woman’s salary dramatically declines relative to her husband’s, and often never fully covers. A recent working paper by the Census Bureau shows that when women have their first child before 25 or after 35, they are able to eventually close the pay gap with their husbands.
On Friday, Federal authorities seized Backpage.com, a classified advertising site primarily used for advertising sex work. Early in 2017, the website shut down its “adult services listings” in response to pressure from law enforcement groups accusing the website of playing host to sex trafficking. However, many of the adult ads were simply rerouted to other sections of Backpage.
Daily News & Commentary
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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 […]
July 25
Philadelphia municipal workers ratify new contract; Chocolate companies escape liability in trafficking suit; Missouri Republicans kill paid sick leave