Right-to-work (RTW) laws neither provide opportunity for gainful employment nor a higher standard of living. In truth, by ending a union's ability to charge administrative fees to employees who benefit from their collectively bargained contract, these laws aim to weaken unions and silence workers. They are designed to help employers, not workers.…

The tables have turned on Michigan's public school boards and other school officials. As a result of changes to the state's labor law in 2023, school districts face the risk of losing some authority to determine who should be teaching in their classrooms. Teachers unions are empowered once again to demand districts treat teachers as if they are…

The recent decision by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) in the "Columbia University"case granting students who serve as teaching or research assistants at private universities the right to unionize dealt a major blow to private higher education as we know it. In a long-anticipated decision, the NLRB ruled that any student who…

This year, labor unions got a reprieve: The Supreme Court deadlocked in a much-anticipated case that could have turned almost every state into Wisconsin, where partisan interests have crippled union power. The case, "Friedrichs vs. California Teachers Association," addressed a previous case, "Abood v. Detroit Board of…

Gov. Wolf has indicated his willingness to modify pensions for future Pennsylvania public sector workers by using a variant of the "stacked hybrid" design proposed in 2013 by Pottsville Republican Rep. Mike Tobash. Negotiations of a compromise pension deal, however, remain stalled because Senate leaders remain committed to their own…

Over the course of the 1980s and 1990s, the contours of neoliberalism took shape, as individual corporations implemented new strategies seeking to shift the frontier of control in their favor and increase their profits. Their actions began to shape the political and economic practices of both major political parties, and the orientation of…

Perhaps the most predictable lesson learned about the imposition of fiscal austerity over the past few years has been that it has generally failed where it has been tried. A recent Education International study of EI members examines global trends in freedom of association and collective bargaining in the education sector since the 2008 financial…

In October 2012, Premier Christy Clark announced government would consult with the education partners for the purpose of reviewing teacher bargaining structures and processes with the goal of providing a more stable learning environment for British Columbia students. The review looked for opportunities to achieve two priorities: (1) Create…

This paper reviews the status of women in Canadian universities historically and from the perspective of faculty associations, with a focus on a case study of the author's own University and faculty union. Collective bargaining has enabled the formalization of some equity provisions within the collective agreement. A network of status of women…

With the maturation of the internet more and more colleges and universities are offering online courses. As these courses enter the mainstream, public policy issues are beginning to emerge. Many of these involve the tension between the "work for hire" doctrine and academic freedom that occurs when educational institutions offer these…

The legislative framework for academic and nonacademic unionization and collective bargaining in Canadian public colleges, universities and technical institutes is set out and compared with mainstream labour law. Significant deviations affecting academic staff in the province of Alberta are explored to understand their effect and the factors which…

An Austrian survey of discriminatory practices in the texts of all collective agreements in force in March 1978 (except those covering public employees) identified six main forms of potential discrimination. Examples found among white-collar workers in the private sector and among textile, clothing, and leather workers are cited. (CT)

Describes and evaluates the effectiveness of multi-employer bargaining in education in Saskatchewan. The relative advantages and disadvantages of centralized negotiations as a means of reducing union "whipsawing" tactics are examined and some observations are made concerning the establishment of multi-unit board bargaining structures in…

Centralization, coordinated bargaining, and multi-unit representation are not the inevitable consequences of changes in school finance. Rather, bargaining structure continues to be a result of a complex interaction that includes many factors. (Author)

The first article comments on workers' education courses in France, specifically the training of retired workers. The second article gives a brief, up-to-date survey of the Confederation of Venezuelan Workers' principal training activities. The last article examines programs at the George Meany Center for Labor Studies. (CT)