The State of the Deregulatory First Amendment at the NLRB

I often criticize the Trump NLRB for taking too narrow a view of workers’ rights, creating an inevitable clash with First Amendment principles. But recently, I’ve had the opposite complaint: …

Heller v. Uber: Supreme Court Must Guard Access to Class Action Lawsuits

On appeal from a decision of the Ontario Court of Appeal issued earlier this year, the case involved the legality of a mandatory arbitration clause in Uber’s standard form contract with drivers …

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German Constitutional Court: Ban on Strike Action for Civil Servants Deemed Constitutional

“In this case, teachers in four German federal states who had the status of civil servants (Beamte) participated in strike activities organized by the trade union for the education sector, …

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Living wages in international and European law

“The majority of EU Member States provide for a statutory minimum wage, although the amount guaranteed is usually not sufficient to secure adequate protection above the poverty threshold (Clauwaert, 2019: …

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Informal Employment, New Forms of Work and Enforcement of Labour Rights

The informal employment question is, first of all, a major challenge for economies and labour markets throughout the world. More than 60 per cent of the world’s employed population are …

HOT GOODS PART I: ROOTING OUT FORCED LABOR IN SUPPLY CHAINS USING THE “HOT GOODS” PROVISIONS OF THE FLSA

“In June of 2019, the owner of a Utah pecan farm was ordered to pay $1 million in back wages to victims of exploitative child labor in violation of the …

All Roads Lead to Rome: Strengthening Domestic Prosecutions of Businesses through the Inclusion of Corporate Liability in the Rome Statute

“Although “business” might not be the first word that springs to mind when thinking of widespread atrocities committed in conflict and post-conflict situations, the involvement of corporate actors in such …

What lessons does France’s Duty of Vigilance law have for other national initiatives?

Last week, a group of French city mayors and NGOs (Notre Affaire à Tous, Eco Maires, Sherpa and ZEA) sent the first formal notice under the France’s Duty of Vigilance law of 2017 to …

Commentary: Questionable Opinion About the Gig Economy

As OnLabor covered last week, the Department of Labor recently issued an “opinion letter” finding that the workers deriving income from an unnamed “virtual marketplace company” are independent contractors and …

Commentary: Jurisdiction, access to remedy in business and human rights cases, and the corporate structure: A tale of two cases

This note introduces two cases, both concerned with liability under a duty of care of parent companies, the obligation of ‘due diligence’ in supply chain operations and the obstacles presented …

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