The Strangely Unsettled State of Public-Sector Labor in the Past Thirty Years

The Strangely Unsettled State of Public-Sector Labor in the Past Thirty Years PDF Author: Joseph E. Slater
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 31

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Book Description
This article, part of a symposium on the history of various areas of labor and employment law, gives an overview of public-sector labor law and labor relations in the past thirty years. The public sector has for decades been central to labor relations in the U.S.; increasingly, it has also acquired a high profile in the political world. Despite great successes in organizing by public-sector unions, public-sector labor law has long been in a state of tumult (including, but not limited to, high-profile laws passed in 2011 gutting the rights of such unions). Although by the 1980s, it seemed as if public-sector collective bargaining was widely (if not universally) accepted, and that it functioned fairly well, the next three decades featured surprising upheavals. Because there is so much variation within the public sector (it is mainly state and local law), there is no single story of the past three decades. This article discusses illustrative events in this period, events which helped shape the broader history of labor relations. It starts with early history of public-sector labor law, then moves to the last three decades. For the 1980s, it discusses two key (and contrasting) events of the early part of the decade: the crushing defeat of the PATCO strike, and the enactment of the Ohio public-sector labor statute. It then discusses some significant twists and turns in the 1990s. Moving to the twenty-first century, it discusses some (mostly positive) trends for public-sector unions in the first decade of the century, but then turns to the wave of anti-union legislation in 2011 and beyond -- although even here, there are some developments in the other direction, e.g. union rights for TSA employees. These events feature defeats and victories over issues as basic as whether public employees should have the right to bargain collectively at all, and they have shaped the entire U.S. labor movement, including the public sector. The also show how public-sector labor relations remains a strangely unsettled issue. The final sections discuss the practical and theoretical policy issues at stake, and attempt to make some predictions for the future.

The Strangely Unsettled State of Public-Sector Labor in the Past Thirty Years

The Strangely Unsettled State of Public-Sector Labor in the Past Thirty Years PDF Author: Joseph E. Slater
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 31

Get Book Here

Book Description
This article, part of a symposium on the history of various areas of labor and employment law, gives an overview of public-sector labor law and labor relations in the past thirty years. The public sector has for decades been central to labor relations in the U.S.; increasingly, it has also acquired a high profile in the political world. Despite great successes in organizing by public-sector unions, public-sector labor law has long been in a state of tumult (including, but not limited to, high-profile laws passed in 2011 gutting the rights of such unions). Although by the 1980s, it seemed as if public-sector collective bargaining was widely (if not universally) accepted, and that it functioned fairly well, the next three decades featured surprising upheavals. Because there is so much variation within the public sector (it is mainly state and local law), there is no single story of the past three decades. This article discusses illustrative events in this period, events which helped shape the broader history of labor relations. It starts with early history of public-sector labor law, then moves to the last three decades. For the 1980s, it discusses two key (and contrasting) events of the early part of the decade: the crushing defeat of the PATCO strike, and the enactment of the Ohio public-sector labor statute. It then discusses some significant twists and turns in the 1990s. Moving to the twenty-first century, it discusses some (mostly positive) trends for public-sector unions in the first decade of the century, but then turns to the wave of anti-union legislation in 2011 and beyond -- although even here, there are some developments in the other direction, e.g. union rights for TSA employees. These events feature defeats and victories over issues as basic as whether public employees should have the right to bargain collectively at all, and they have shaped the entire U.S. labor movement, including the public sector. The also show how public-sector labor relations remains a strangely unsettled issue. The final sections discuss the practical and theoretical policy issues at stake, and attempt to make some predictions for the future.

Public Workers

Public Workers PDF Author: Joseph E. Slater
Publisher: Cornell University Press
ISBN: 9780801440120
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 276

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Book Description
Public Workers is the first book to analyze why public-sector labor law evolved as it did, separate from and much more restrictive than private-sector labor law, and what effect this law had on public-sector unions, organized labor as a whole, and by extension all of American politics.

Public Sector Labor Law in the Age of Obama

Public Sector Labor Law in the Age of Obama PDF Author: Joseph E. Slater
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
The attacks on public sector collective bargaining rights during the past year have arguably been the most important development in U.S. labor and employment law in recent memory. While the most famous and radical moves took place in Wisconsin and Ohio, over a dozen states have enacted significant restrictions on the rights of government employees and their unions. This is important, not least because public sector workers now comprise more than half the total number of union members in the U.S., and because of the broader political implications of “defunding” and otherwise crippling a major constituent of the Democratic Party. This article, based on a symposium paper, discusses not only these developments but also other key events in public sector labor relations in recent years: the battle for collective bargaining rights at the Transportation Safety Administration; and recent cases interpreting a 2007 decision of the Missouri Supreme Court which held that the Missouri Constitution provided a right to collective bargaining for all public employees in the state (without defining what that right specifically entails).

Public Sector Labor Relations

Public Sector Labor Relations PDF Author: David Lewin
Publisher: Jossey-Bass
ISBN:
Category : Collective bargaining
Languages : en
Pages : 680

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Book Description


State Profiles: Current Status of Public Sector Labor Relations

State Profiles: Current Status of Public Sector Labor Relations PDF Author: United States. Division of Public Employee Labor Relations
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Collective bargaining
Languages : en
Pages : 118

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Book Description


Chapter 21

Chapter 21 PDF Author: Patrice M. Mareschal
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Public sector unions operate in politically challenging environments. Recent limitations on collective bargaining rights in Wisconsin and attempts to curtail collective bargaining in Ohio are illustrative of union vulnerability to shifts in the political climate. In Wisconsin, only months after taking office, Governor Walker eliminated most collective bargaining rights for public sector employees, excluding the police and firefighters. Day care workers and home health care aides had only gained such rights under the previous governor (Collins, 2012). In Ohio, Governor Kasich introduced similar legislation, but unlike Walker also attempted to limit collective bargaining for public safety employees. Like in Wisconsin, child care providers and home health care aides lost their collective bargaining rights gained under the immediately preceding governor (Early and Wilson, 2012). The susceptibility of unions to political changes stems in part from the legal environment in which they operate and in part from the nature of their employers (Slater, 2012). State law governs collective bargaining for public sector employees, and the employers, that are also elected officials, can change the law depending on their preferences. Preferences of elected officials related to collective bargaining rights, and unions more broadly, depend on various factors ranging from party ideology, legitimacy concerns, and power relations among political actors to changes in local fiscal conditions and shifts in public opinion. The election of public officials unsympathetic to unions in several states and the pressure placed by recent budget crises even on sympathetic elected officials resulted in what some scholars call a “war on public sector collective bargaining” and “the most widespread and substantive attack on collective bargaining in the US since the 1930s' battles in the private sector” (Freeman and Han, 2012, p. 387). This paper examines recent developments in public sector labor relations at the state and local levels. It begins with an overview of the state and local public sector workforce characteristics followed by a brief description of events surrounding pension crises and limitations on collective bargaining rights in several states and municipalities. The paper further discusses forms, causes, and implications of restrictions on collective bargaining for public sector employees. Finally, concluding remarks focus on some of the lessons learned from recent developments in public sector labor relations and offer suggestions for the way forward.

Vulnerability and the Legal Organization of Work

Vulnerability and the Legal Organization of Work PDF Author: Martha Albertson Fineman
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1315518562
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 415

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Book Description
This book uses the concepts of vulnerability and resilience to analyze the situation of individuals and institutions in the context of the employment relationship. It is based on the premise that both employer and employee are vulnerable to various social, economic, and political forces, although differently so. It demonstrates how in responding to those complementary institutional relationships of employer and employee the state unequally and inequitably favors employers over employees. Several chapters included in this collection also consider how the state shapes, creates and maintains through law the social identities of employer and employee and how that legal regime operates as the allocation of power and privilege. This unique and fundamental role of the state in defining the employment relationship profoundly affects the respective abilities and degree of resiliency of actual employers and employees. Other chapters explore how attention to the respective vulnerability and resilience of those who do and those who direct work in assessing the employment relationship can raise fundamental questions of social justice and suggest new avenues for critical engagement with labor and employment law. Collectively, these pieces articulate a framework for imaging what would constitute an appropriately "Responsive State" in the employment context and how those interested in social justice might begin to use the concepts of vulnerability and resilience in their arguments.

Labour Law in the USA

Labour Law in the USA PDF Author: Alvin L. Goldman
Publisher: Kluwer Law International B.V.
ISBN: 940350014X
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 606

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Book Description
Derived from the renowned multi-volume International Encyclopaedia of Laws, this monograph on the USA not only describes and analyses the legal aspects of labour relations, but also examines labour relations practices and developing trends. It provides a survey of the subject that is both usefully brief and sufficiently detailed to answer most questions likely to arise in any pertinent legal setting. Both individual and collective labour relations are covered in ample detail, with attention to such underlying and pervasive factors as employment contracts, suspension of the contracts, dismissal laws and covenant of non-competition, as well as international private law. The author describes all important details of the law governing hours and wages, benefits, intellectual property implications, trade union activity, employers’ associations, workers’ participation, collective bargaining, industrial disputes, and much more. Building on a clear overview of labour law and labour relations, the book offers practical guidance on which sound preliminary decisions may be based. It will find a ready readership among lawyers representing parties with interests in the USA, and academics and researchers will appreciate its value in the study of comparative trends in laws affecting labour and labour relations.

A Strange Case

A Strange Case PDF Author: Lance A. Compa
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 146

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Book Description
Freedom of association under international law -- Freedom of association under US law -- A note on methodology -- Violations of international freedom of association standards by European companies in the United States -- Recommendations -- Acknowledgments.

Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States

Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States PDF Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309142393
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 348

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Book Description
Scores of talented and dedicated people serve the forensic science community, performing vitally important work. However, they are often constrained by lack of adequate resources, sound policies, and national support. It is clear that change and advancements, both systematic and scientific, are needed in a number of forensic science disciplines to ensure the reliability of work, establish enforceable standards, and promote best practices with consistent application. Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States: A Path Forward provides a detailed plan for addressing these needs and suggests the creation of a new government entity, the National Institute of Forensic Science, to establish and enforce standards within the forensic science community. The benefits of improving and regulating the forensic science disciplines are clear: assisting law enforcement officials, enhancing homeland security, and reducing the risk of wrongful conviction and exoneration. Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States gives a full account of what is needed to advance the forensic science disciplines, including upgrading of systems and organizational structures, better training, widespread adoption of uniform and enforceable best practices, and mandatory certification and accreditation programs. While this book provides an essential call-to-action for congress and policy makers, it also serves as a vital tool for law enforcement agencies, criminal prosecutors and attorneys, and forensic science educators.