LAW - 923B Immigrants in the Workplace

(2-3 hrs.)

This course is designed to provide a comprehensive background in labor and employment law as it applies to immigrant workers in the United States. The development of this law and the exclusion of categories of workers from certain rights and remedies will be examined in the context of historical, political, and legal considerations. Particular attention will be given to the intersections between labor/employment law and immigration law. The course will focus on rights and remedies emanating from the following labor and employment statutes: the National Labor Relations Act and corresponding state labor statutes; the Fair Labor Standards Act; Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (focusing specifically on national origin discrimination and English-only policies); the Occupational Safety and Health Act; and state workers compensation statutes. In discussing these statutes, the course will combine the “textbook” instruction of substantive labor and employment law with a discussion of real-life, strategic choices to be made in pursuing workplace rights for immigrants. The course will also examine contemporary issues relating to immigrants in the workplace, including employment verification systems and worksite immigration raids. Rathod Spring