An article by the Associated Press situates Wisconsin’s right-to-work law in the broader context of a “general assault on unions” by Republican lawmakers across the country. In addition to right-to-work laws, a number of states are considering other measures, including, for example, eliminating requirements of “union-level wages on public projects” and “legislation that would let local governments dissolve collective bargaining agreements in times of economic hardship.” In all, “nearly 800 union-related bills have been proposed in statehouses,” and even some local governments have moved to pass their own laws restriction unions. As the article points out, while supporters of these bills couch their arguments in terms of economic growth, the motivation in many cases may be political, since “labor increases the participation of lower-income voters who tend to back Democrats.”
Meanwhile, the Huffington Post reports that in a speech before the International Association of Fire Fighters, a leading union, Vice President Joe Biden sharply criticized the GOP for its attacks on unions. The Vice President told the crowd that there has been “a concentrated, well-organized, well-paid, well-funded effort to undermine organized labor” and that Republicans are “willing to sacrifice your needs on the altar of ideology.”
The Washington Post reports that workplace drug testing has been in decline since the peak of the drug war during the 1990s, largely “because there’s very little evidence that testing does much to improve safety or productivity.” Advocates for workers’ rights have applauded this trend; as Barbra Kavanaugh, executive director of the Employment Justice Center in Washington, argues, “Anything that removes arbitrary or unrelated barriers to employment is a good thing.”
In immigration news, according to the New York Times agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced earlier this week that they had arrested over 2,000 noncitizens who had been convicted of crimes “during a five-day nationwide operation in early march.” As the Times points out, “[s]howing tough immigration enforcement is central to the administration’s strategy to justify President Obama’s controversial executive actions that would protect millions of illegal immigrants from deportation.” However, while over 2,000 noncitizens were arrested, the Times reports only that “more than 1,000” of those had committed felonies, while many others had committed minor offenses such as driving under the influence.
Daily News & Commentary
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October 14
Census Bureau layoffs, Amazon holiday hiring, and the final settlement in a meat producer wage-fixing lawsuit.
October 13
Texas hotel workers ratify a contract; Pope Leo visits labor leaders; Kaiser lays off over two hundred workers.
October 12
The Trump Administration fires thousands of federal workers; AFGE files a supplemental motion to pause the Administration’s mass firings; Democratic legislators harden their resolve during the government shutdown.
October 10
California bans algorithmic price-fixing; New York City Council passes pay transparency bills; and FEMA questions staff who signed a whistleblowing letter.
October 9
Equity and the Broadway League resume talks amid a looming strike; federal judge lets alcoholism ADA suit proceed; Philadelphia agrees to pay $40,000 to resolve a First Amendment retaliation case.
October 8
In today’s news and commentary, the Trump administration threatens no back pay for furloughed federal workers; the Second Circuit denies a request from the NFL for an en banc review in the Brian Flores case; and Governor Gavin Newsom signs an agreement to create a pathway for unionization for Uber and Lyft drivers.