Anita Alem is a student at Harvard Law School.
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court heard oral argument regarding whether a worker who has signed a private arbitration agreement, under which all legal disputes must be handled outside of court, may sue their employer in court under a California labor law that permits private people to bring a public enforcement action. The law, called the Private Attorneys General Act, authorizes private individuals to sue employers for California labor code violations; if the lawsuit is successful, the damages are split with the state. The Court considered whether the California labor law is preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA), a 1925 law that the Court has interpreted broadly over the past several decades. Viking River Cruises was the second FAA case the Supreme Court heard this week, after Monday’s oral argument in Saxon regarding what class of workers are exempted from the FAA as interstate employees, as Tala reported on Tuesday.
The Bessemer, Alabama Amazon warehouse union election, which ran via mail from February 4 to March 25, had only 39% turnout according to the Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store Union (RWDSU). The election is the second attempt in the Bessemer warehouse. As Jon Levitan reported last November, the NLRB determined Amazon interfered within the previous election, which had 55% turnout, in part because Amazon installed a mailbox to intimidate workers into thinking the company would have access to union ballots. Ballot counting in this election will begin as early as Thursday.
Daily News & Commentary
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September 4
NLRB advice memo narrows political protest protections; NLRB asks federal appeals court for deference.
September 3
Seond Circuit rejects a NLRB standard for union insignia in employer dress codes; House Republicans ramp up labor union investigations.
September 2
Trump’s US Steel agreement impacts labor talks; Mamdani clashes with teachers’ union; Boeing plans to resume bargaining talks.
September 1
California legislature passes a bill banning AI workplace surveillance of workers' emotional states; Labor Department repeals decades-old farmworker protection rules; Sixth Circuit upholds a $1.4 million verdict for farmworkers.
August 31
Boston Symphony Orchestra musicians stave off first-ever strike; Cleveland Public Library workers ratify new contracts; New York State AFL-CIO makes endorsements
August 30
Seattle teachers vote to authorize a strike days before the school year begins; BNSF Railway’s AI dispatching system puts workers in danger; and a California court finds that the DOL’s pay cuts for non-citizen farmworkers are unlawful.