Mother Jones explains San Francisco’s new law that will sharply curtail “on call” scheduling in the city’s major retailers. The new law requires employers to post schedules at least two weeks in advance and pay employees whose shifts are cancelled at the last minute. In addition, employers must offer available shifts to existing employees before part-time workers, a move that should make it harder for them to rely on part-time workers to avoid paying benefits. The new law is aimed at reducing the unpredictability faced by countless retail workers, a condition Jodi Kantor has described as “injecting turbulence into parents’ routines and personal relationships, undermining efforts to expand preschool access, driving some mothers out of the work force and redistributing some of the uncertainty of doing business from corporations to families.”
The New York Times has run a profile of Michele Roberts, the new head of the NBA players’ union, and the first female lead of a major sports union. Roberts is expected to be more confrontational than her predecessor had been with the league’s commissioner, Adam Silver, on various aspects of the league’s pay model. The article describes how Roberts has actively used the media to shape her public profile, in order to position herself on equal footing with the league’s management once collective bargaining begins.
The Atlantic wonders if we are seeing the reemergence of conscious capitalism. We’ve covered this idea before; it involves the philosophy both that employees will be treated well with regard to wages and benefits, and also that a company might focus on goals aside from pure profits, say, the environment, or local communities. The article cites the recent rise in benefit corporations, which make these commitments explicit; in some states, there is a certification process through which an outside non-profit inspects the business and reports on whether it is actually meeting its public-minded goals. The article also cites this summer’s Market Basket controversy to suggest that generous policies towards employees and the public might be favored and rewarded by consumers.
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July 2
Block, Nanda, and Nayak argue that the NLRA is under attack, harming democracy; the EEOC files a motion to dismiss a lawsuit brought by former EEOC Commissioner Jocelyn Samuels; and SEIU Local 1000 strikes an agreement with the State of California to delay the state's return-to-office executive order for state workers.
July 1
In today’s news and commentary, the Department of Labor proposes to roll back minimum wage and overtime protections for home care workers, a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit by public defenders over a union’s Gaza statements, and Philadelphia’s largest municipal union is on strike for first time in nearly 40 years. On Monday, the U.S. […]
June 30
Antidiscrimination scholars question McDonnell Douglas, George Washington University Hospital bargained in bad faith, and NY regulators defend LPA dispensary law.
June 29
In today’s news and commentary, Trump v. CASA restricts nationwide injunctions, a preliminary injunction continues to stop DOL from shutting down Job Corps, and the minimum wage is set to rise in multiple cities and states. On Friday, the Supreme Court held in Trump v. CASA that universal injunctions “likely exceed the equitable authority that […]
June 27
Labor's role in Zohran Mamdani's victory; DHS funding amendment aims to expand guest worker programs; COSELL submission deadline rapidly approaching
June 26
A district judge issues a preliminary injunction blocking agencies from implementing Trump’s executive order eliminating collective bargaining for federal workers; workers organize for the reinstatement of two doctors who were put on administrative leave after union activity; and Lamont vetoes unemployment benefits for striking workers.