Annie Hollister is an Honors Attorney at the U.S. Department of Labor and an alumna of Harvard Law School.
President Trump plans to nominate Eugene Scalia to succeed Alexander Acosta as Secretary of Labor. Scalia—son of Nino—served as Solicitor of Labor under President George W. Bush, and is currently Co-Chair of the Administrative Law and Regulatory Group at Gibson Dunn. Scalia has spent his career representing management and business interests in labor, employment, and regulatory matters. He attracted national attention in the early 2000s through his outspoken opposition to regulation related to ergonomics, which he described as “thoroughly unreliable science.” This position proved damaging to Scalia’s tenure as Labor Solicitor, and he ultimately was not confirmed to a permanent position following his recess appointment. As head of the labor and employment practice at Gibson Dunn, Scalia defended Wal-Mart against suits brought under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and represented the retail giant in a 2006 case striking down a Maryland law that would have required employers with over 10,000 employees to spend at least eight percent of their payroll on health benefits. More recently, in the years following the financial crisis, Scalia has gained a formidable reputation as one of the financial industry’s “go-to guys” for challenging regulation. Democrats are expected to oppose Scalia’s nomination, and Patrick Pizzella will serve as Acting Secretary.
The House passed the Raise the Wage Act yesterday, moving one step closer to what would be the first minimum-wage increase in over a decade, and the largest increase since the minimum wage was first introduced in 1938. As Jared explained yesterday, the bill would increase the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $15 over six years. The bill would also eliminate the subminimum tipped wage—a minimum-wage carveout that, as Politico explained earlier this week, is rooted in a two-tiered wage structure that arose as a legacy of slavery. The bill is expected to stall in the Republican-controlled Senate, nonetheless represents a victory for the national Fight for Fifteen movement, which has gained consistent wins at the state level.
The Harvard Graduate Students Union, a UAW affiliate, has published a letter declaring an intention to call a strike authorization vote if the university does not adjust its bargaining positions. Harvard graduate students voted last year to form a union in part of a growing wave of organizing in the academic sector. According to the letter, however, Harvard has failed to live up to its bargaining duty, offering “untenable” proposals including effective wage cuts and a grievance procedure that includes a carveout excluding sexual harassment and discrimination. Graduate students have faced an uphill organizing battle since the NLRB affirmed their right to unionize in 2016. Graduate student unions at both Columbia and the University of Chicago have engaged in recognitional strikes, and unions at Duke and Yale both withdrew their petitions after prolonged battles with university administration. Harvard University and the Harvard Graduate Students Union-UAW have been in contract negotiations since last summer. In April of this year, the Cambridge City Council formally backed the students’ contract demands.
Daily News & Commentary
Start your day with our roundup of the latest labor developments. See all
July 15
The Department of Labor announces new guidance around Occupational Safety and Health Administration penalty and debt collection procedures; a Cornell University graduate student challenges graduate student employee-status under the National Labor Relations Act; the Supreme Court clears the way for the Trump administration to move forward with a significant staff reduction at the Department of Education.
July 14
More circuits weigh in on two-step certification; Uber challengers Seattle deactivation ordinance.
July 13
APWU and USPS ratify a new contract, ICE barred from racial profiling in Los Angeles, and the fight continues over the dismantling of NIOSH
July 11
Regional director orders election without Board quorum; 9th Circuit pauses injunction on Executive Order; Driverless car legislation in Massachusetts
July 10
Wisconsin Supreme Court holds UW Health nurses are not covered by Wisconsin’s Labor Peace Act; a district judge denies the request to stay an injunction pending appeal; the NFLPA appeals an arbitration decision.
July 9
the Supreme Court allows Trump to proceed with mass firings; Secretary of Agriculture suggests Medicaid recipients replace deported migrant farmworkers; DHS ends TPS for Nicaragua and Honduras