Center for Labor and a Just Economy at Harvard Law School

In recent years, American politics, union organizing, and workplace dynamics have changed dramatically, prompting a reevaluation of unions’ role in protecting and strengthening democracy. In partnership with the Harvard Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation, we hosted a webinar, “The Role of Unions in Elections and Democracy,” featuring Caitlin Fishman, Political Director, Service Employees International Union (SEIU); Jake Grumbach, Associate Professor at the University of California, Berkeley, Goldman School of Public Policy; and Jessica Tang, President of AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS AFL-CIO (AFT) Massachusetts in a conversation moderated by Sharon Block, Professor of Practice Harvard Law School and CLJE Executive Director. Panelists discussed the various ways in which exercising workplace democracy translates to democracy writ large, exploring ideas such as building solidarity across identity groups, tackling disinformation by establishing trust, and organizing around issues rather than party lines. They emphasized the union’s role in motivating members to get to the polls and shaping their identities as active voters, pointing out that unions give their members the chance to flex their democratic muscles more consistently. “I think identity as a union member and a worker is very much intertwined…getting to the voting booth in the first place is not something everyone is naturally inclined to do, and being part of the democratic process is not something everyone has as an opportunity to flex those democratic muscles. And I think that's where unions...have a really, really important role to play,” Jessica Tang, AFT President, said. “If you’re not regularly participating in those opportunities, you may not identify yourself...as a person who has active power to be able to participate.” They highlighted the cycle that union elections contribute to: workers win union elections to pass policy in order to grow worker power, which leads to more members voting for pro-worker candidates at the state and federal levels, which in turn leads to more pro-worker policies passed nationally. Watch the full discussion on the connection between unions and a healthy democracy below.? #unions #democracy #HarvardLaw https://lnkd.in/e3qXUdDn

Earlier this month, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Doha Mekki of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division delivered engaging remarks to the Harvard Law School community about how the agency’s enforcement efforts have been informed by an understanding of the impact of labor market competition on working people’s lives. In a conversation moderated by CLJE Executive Director Sharon Block, Mekki detailed her career path to the division, as well as the impact of some of the agency’s recent accomplishments in protecting workers’ rights. These included successfully blocking the Simon and Schuster and Penguin Random House publishing merger, securing $80 million in compensation for workers in the poultry industry, and filing an amicus brief on behalf of the United States in the Supreme Court case, NAACP v. Alston. Mekki also discussed recent developments in the case against the UPMC health system in Pennsylvania, in which the DOJ has filed a statement of interest in the case alleging that UPMC has violated antitrust laws by intimidating its workers with noncompetes, blacklisting employees, charging employees for required training, and shutting down multiple hospitals, among other allegations. To future lawyers interested in pursuing a career in this field, she confirmed: “The best time to be an antitrust lawyer is right now.” Watch our conversation with Doha Mekki: https://lnkd.in/ejCHBSiE? Read the coverage from Harvard Law Today: https://lnkd.in/ebujTpym #antitrust #workersrights #HarvardLaw

This week, we were honored to hear from Acting Secretary Julie Su, President of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA Sara Nelson, and the team behind the documentary Union, Brett Story and Stephen Maing, during an energizing conversation co-hosted by the Institute of Politics at Harvard Kennedy School JFK Jr. Forum, the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School, and CLJE. The conversation was moderated by Marshall Ganz, Rita E. Hauser Senior Lecturer in Leadership, Organizing, and Civil Society at the Harvard Kennedy School. In a rousing call to action, the panelists discussed the importance of organizing across sectors, the imperative role that states and localities play in cementing policy and building worker power, and why the narratives we tell are essential to shaping a movement. Secretary Su has spent much of her career as acting labor secretary trying to right the narrative. “There is always this narrative that when there is disruption because workers demand more, that it’s workers’ fault,” she said in her remarks. “When in fact, that disruption is leading to something that will better our society. The disruption is because the people who should do the right thing refuse to do it.” Connecting the power of workplace democracy to our nation’s democracy as a whole, Nelson reminded us: “When we don’t have democracy in our workplace, then our democracy is in jeopardy of being lost completely.” To those that believe affording workers higher wages and more rights will lessen the will to work, she says: “They don’t understand working people. We take tremendous pride in what we do, who we are, and how we contribute to the world.” The audience was left with a clear call to action: we must take control of our narrative and organize together – across sectors – in order to achieve substantial gains. Union, a Sundance award winning documentary, tells the story of the intrepid group of Amazon warehouse workers organizing Amazon’s first labor union. A testament to worker power and to a passion for a better life and more just society, organizing a grassroots effort against one of our most powerful corporate entities is no small feat. Watch the panel discussion here: https://lnkd.in/ehhuPB_Y The film will be showing at the Brattle Theater in Cambridge, MA on October 26. More information here: https://lnkd.in/ez6ubH9y ? ? #Union #workerpower #HarvardLaw

Experts from the Center for Labor and a Just Economy at Harvard Law School argue that recent Supreme Court decisions contribute to an "existential threat" for labor law. https://lnkd.in/e-7RYmge

The Burnes Center for Social Change Senior Fellow Seth Harris is joined by Executive Director of the Center for Labor and a Just Economy at Harvard Law School, Sharon Block, and former director of government affairs at the AFL-CIO, Bill Samuel, for the first ever "buy or sell" episode on Power At Work! Find out if Block, Samuel, and Harris are "buying" or "selling" certain predictions about the labor movement by visiting the links in the comments. Watch the blogcast or listen to the podcast and subscribe for more worker power content!

On September 27th, California became the 10th state to pass legislation banning mandatory captive audience meetings. Employers frequently deploy anti-union meetings as a union-busting tactic in response to organizing efforts and retaliate against “at-will” employees who refuse to participate. The law, which will take effect on January 1st, 2025, effectively prohibits employers from subjecting workers to punishment for declining to attend these meetings. Check out which other states have passed similar bans in our new resource, Building Worker Power in Cities and States: A Toolkit for State and Local Labor Policy Innovation. Throughout the toolkit, you can find interactive tables tracking developments across a range of policy areas that build worker power and protect workers’ rights. Explore: https://lnkd.in/eH9CbFDm #workersrights #statelaw #HarvardLaw

Faculty and staff of CLJE presented before the Washington State Senate Labor and Commerce Committee at a work session on Monday, September 23rd. Presenters from the Center included Harvard Law School Professor of Practice and Executive Director Sharon Block, Harvard Law Kestnbaum Professor of Labor and Industry and Faculty Co-Director Benjamin Sachs, CLJE Fellow Rajesh Nayak, and CLJE:Lab Project Manager, Yoorie Chang. Topics covered include the rules of labor law preemption, the implications of the recent Supreme Court decisions on worker protections and the administrative state, and the importance of state and local action in protecting workers. The presenters also shared an overview of CLJE’s new resource, “Building Worker Power in Cities and States: A Toolkit for State and Local Policy Innovation.”?Explore the toolkit here: https://lnkd.in/ergxbtSm Watch the session below: https://lnkd.in/evJy3ysi #senate #labor #HarvardLaw

Grateful for the opportunity to present with my colleagues Sharon Block, Ben Sachs, and Rajesh Nayak from the Center for Labor and a Just Economy at Harvard Law School before the Washington State Senate Labor and Commerce Committee's work session today! We discussed the rules of labor law preemption and the implications of recent Supreme Court decisions on protecting workers' rights at the sub-federal level, and shared an overview of our new toolkit, "Building Worker Power in Cities and States: A Toolkit for State and Local Labor Policy Innovation." ICYMI, check out the toolkit on our website: https://lnkd.in/eKpDmEpi Watch the session here: https://lnkd.in/eqgaySqH

On Friday, over 30,000 Boeing machinists went on strike against the aerospace giant, citing stagnant wages, mismanagement, and unfair labor practices among other disputes. The strike is one of many currently unfolding across various industries against the backdrop of a critical election cycle that pits the interests of billionaires against our working class. CLJE Executive Director Sharon Block told Bloomberg Law, “This is a pretty dramatic reminder that unions are democratic institutions, and clearly the members here, the workers here, need to see more from this company in order to rebuild the trust that has really been lost between this union and this company over these past years.” Boeing has faced public scrutiny for mismanagement, safety issues, and ineffective negotiations over wages in the face of cost-of-living increases. As Block told Bloomberg months prior, “Boeing right now should prioritize having a stable, well-compensated workforce that can focus completely on helping the company execute a plan to improve quality, and not have workers worried about whether they’re getting paid enough or not.” Listen to Sharon Block on the factory strike for Bloomberg Law below: https://lnkd.in/eukch9gP #labor #strike #HarvardLaw

Happy Labor Day from CLJE! Today, we’re launching a new resource, “Building Worker Power in Cities and States: A Toolkit for State and Local Labor Policy Innovation.” Our system of labor laws has failed to adequately protect workers, let alone build worker power. Despite the challenges to reform labor law at the federal level, cities and states have experimented with innovative new policies that protect workers’ rights in meaningful ways. This toolkit explores the landscape of worker power-building policies that have been – or might be – tried at the state and local levels. It is intended to serve as an accessible resource for policymakers, organizers, strategists, researchers, communicators, and lawyers. The exciting policy ideas and successes highlighted throughout are a testament to the innovative spirit and energy across the labor movement ecosystem today. Our toolkit is available in both digital PDF and interactive web forms on our website. We plan to refine and update it as we continue to track policy developments and legal challenges, and encourage you to check back often and reach out with your suggestions. The toolkit includes: - 11 sections on labor law and policy, including workers’ boards, workers excluded from the NLRA, the role unions play in benefits administration, and more - Policy and worker spotlights and testimonies, serving as helpful and inspiring examples of what has been successful? - Options for further state and local action? - Analysis of preemption risk - Additional resources Explore the toolkit here: https://lnkd.in/eE-yYfCK #LaborDay #workerpower #HarvardLaw