Edward Nasser is a student at Harvard Law School.
The nonprofit group United to Protect Democracy is suing the Trump administration over alleged intimidation of civil civil servants. In a blog post, one of the lawyers asserted that their goal was to protect “the civil service from purges, intimidation, or politicization.” The group seeks documents from the Department of Energy related to an attempt by the Trump transition team to get the names of civil servants and other contractors who worked on Obama administration climate change programs. A suit against the Department of Health and Human Services is similar, seeking documents related to the Trump administrations targeting of employees who worked on or expressed views on the Affordable Care Act or abortion rights.
The New York Times offers analysis on the “winners and losers” of the Congressional spending deal that will fund the government until Oct. 1. Among the winners are retired mine workers, who will receive federal backing for their struggling health care plans. The agreement represents a concession by Democrats generally, but a big win for Sen. Joe Manchin III (D-WV) and others from coal states.
According to the Wall Street Journal, a Female engineer at Facebook has collected data that suggests code written by women is rejected 35% more often than their male counterparts. The finding affirms a long-held suspicion among female engineers that their work received more scrutiny than men’s. A Facebook spokesperson described the findings as, “incomplete and inaccurate—performed by a former Facebook engineer with an incomplete data set.”
French labor unions are split on whether to endorse Emmanuel Macron or Marine Le Pen in the upcoming presidential election, according to the New York Times. Unions have historically opposed Le Pen’s far right National Front, but are also skeptical of the job market overhauls that Macron defended as economy minister and intends to expand.
Daily News & Commentary
Start your day with our roundup of the latest labor developments. See all
October 20
Korean unions oppose labor exemption bill; Portland city workers prepare for strike; UPenn grad student union looks to dismiss university filing
October 19
FDA reverses course on policy prohibiting off-duty union activity; FAA and NATCA reach deal to secure pay increase for air traffic controllers.
October 18
Federal judge again halts cancellation of the Bureau of Prisons’ CBA; tabletop gaming workers face roadblocks in union recognition.
October 16
Department of Labor reduces wage-and-hour enforcement at unionized workplaces; Fain's victory poses question of federal monitor's extension.
October 15
New reporting examines the rollback of child labor protections; California tries to block a strike; NLRB charges Wisconsin mental health provider with firing workers during union drive.
October 14
Eleventh Circuit overturns ERISA exhaustion rule; DHS finalizes removal of automatic renewal for work permits; AFGE challenges SSA over flexible scheduling policy.