Tag: Labor

  • April 17, 2025 National Day of Action for Higher Ed (Higher Ed Labor United)

    April 17, 2025 National Day of Action for Higher Ed (Higher Ed Labor United)

    On April 17, HELU is partnering with the Coalition for Action in Higher Education (CAHE) for the National Day of Action for Higher Education. There are more than 175 events planned in 44 states for April 17. We urge you to join us however you can, either in-person or online.

    As campus workers, students, and community members, we have a
    unique power and responsibility to exercise our collective voice in this
    moment of turmoil. It is our labor and our ideas which sustain higher
    education, and higher education sustains our economy and communities.

    The April 17 National Day of Action for Higher Education asserts our voice and our power, in a myriad of ways that reflect the diversity of our colleges and universities. 

    Learn more and find an action near you. 
     

    Source link

  • Upcoming Events April 1st and April 8th (Higher Ed Labor United)

    Upcoming Events April 1st and April 8th (Higher Ed Labor United)

    By cutting funds to lifesaving research and medical care, the Trump administration is abandoning families who are suffering and costing taxpayers billions of dollars. These cuts are dangerous to our health, and dangerous to our economy.

    On Tuesday, April 8th, 2025 workers across the country are standing up and demanding NO cuts to education and life-saving research.

    Organize an action for April 8 or join one already in the works.
     

    Source link

  • The Fight for Democracy in America (CUNY School of Labor and Urban Studies)

    The Fight for Democracy in America (CUNY School of Labor and Urban Studies)

    Fri. March 7 — 12:00pm-1:30pm:

     

    “From Multiracial Democracy to Multiracial Fascism?: 

    What is the Future of the American Experiment?”

     

    Guest Speakers:

    Alexis McGill Johnson (she/her) – President and CEO,

    Planned Parenthood Federation; Planned Parenthood Action Fund

    Eric Ward (he/him) – Executive Vice President, Race Forward

    Dorian Warren (he/him) – Co-President, Center for Community Change; Community Change Action

     

    Moderator:

    Alethia Jones (she/her) – Director, Civic Engagement and Leadership Development, CUNY School of Labor and Urban Studies

    Source link

  • Black History Month: African Americans and Labor

    Black History Month: African Americans and Labor

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    This February 2025, we’re honoring Black History Month. The 2025 theme is “African Americans and Labor,” emphasizing the impact Black Americans have made through various working roles.

    We’d like to recognize the significant contributions of three Black educators who helped shape the future of higher education, breaking down barriers and inspiring generations of learners and educational leaders.

    Mary McLeod Bethune

    Mary McLeod Bethune is regarded as one of the most significant Black educators and civil rights activists of the 20th century. The daughter of formerly enslaved parents, Bethune believed education was key to opening the doors of opportunity for Black Americans. She founded the Daytona Normal and Industrial Institute for Negro Girls in Daytona, Florida, in 1904, serving as president of the school. The school was eventually combined with the Cookman Institute for Men in 1923 (other sources cite 1929), merging to form the Bethune-Cookman College, Bethune becoming the first Black woman to serve as a college president. The college was one of the few institutions where Black students could seek a college degree. And as of fall 2023, Bethune-Cookman University enrolled 2,415 undergraduate students.

    Mary McLeod Bethune, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Photographs and Prints Division, The New York Public Library. (1940 – 1949).

    Kelly Miller

    Kelly Miller was a groundbreaking educator, mathematician and writer, becoming the first Black man to attend Johns Hopkins University for post-graduate study. He would go on to eventually join Howard University’s faculty as a mathematics professor, helping found the American Negro Academy in 1897, the first organization for Black scholars and artists.

    Miller introduced sociology to Howard’s curriculum in 1895, becoming the first person to teach the subject at the university. Eventually becoming dean of Howard’s College of Arts and Sciences in 1907, he worked to add new natural and social science courses, transforming the curriculum. Due to his tireless recruitment efforts across the south, student enrollment tripled during his first four years in that position.

    Kelly Miller.
    Kelly Miller, LL.D. Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Jean Blackwell Hutson Research and Reference Division, The New York Public Library. (1904).

    Mary Jane Patterson

    Becoming the first Black woman to receive a bachelor’s degree when she graduated from Oberlin College in 1862, Mary Jane Patterson quickly established herself as trailblazer. She devoted her career to education, teaching at the Institute of Colored Youth, now known as Cheyney University, eventually becoming the school principal at the Preparatory High School for Colored Youth, the first U.S. public high school for Black Americans. The Mary Jane Patterson Scholarship was established in 2019, which aims to support post-baccalaureate students who are interested in teaching in urban classrooms.

    Mary Jane Patterson
    Mary Jane Patterson, first Black woman to be granted a bachelor’s degree in the U.S. (Oberlin College, 1862). Photo retrieved from Oberlin College Archives.

     

    During this Black History Month 2025, we celebrate the contributions of these three Black educators whose accomplishments continue to ring out throughout higher education today.

    If you’re interested in history content for your course, we encourage you to browse our history catalog.

    Source link

  • Philadelphia Schools Could Start Before Labor Day for the Next 2 Years – The 74

    Philadelphia Schools Could Start Before Labor Day for the Next 2 Years – The 74


    Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter

    Philadelphia students could head back to classes before Labor Day for the next two years, according to proposed academic calendars the district released Tuesday.

    The pre-Labor Day start for the 2025-26 and 2026-27 calendars will allow for longer spring and winter recesses as well as additional cultural and religious holidays throughout the year, district officials said this week.

    Superintendent Tony Watlington also confirmed Tuesday that district schools and offices will be closed on Friday for the Philadelphia Eagles celebratory Super Bowl parade.

    “We look forward to celebrating the Eagles’ victory as a community, and we hope that our students, staff and families will do so safely and responsibly,” Watlington said in a statement.

    The question of whether to start before or after Labor Day has rankled families and district leaders in recent years, in part because many Philly schools do not have adequate air conditioning. That has forced some buildings to close or dismiss students early due to excessive heat in the first week back.

    This school year, the first day back landed before Labor Day, and 63 schools without air conditioning dismissed students early, during the first week of classes. However, school started after Labor Day in 2023-24, and heat closures still impacted students’ learning time that first week.

    Watlington said at his state of the schools address this year that over the past three school years, the number of schools without air conditioning has shrunk from 118 to 57 thanks in part to a donation from Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts.

    Shakeera Warthen-Canty, assistant superintendent of school operations and management at the district, said their academic calendar recommendations this year are built off of a survey and several in-person feedback sessions.

    The majority of parents and caregivers who responded preferred a post-Labor Day start, the survey found. But students, teachers, school staff, and community members reported they overwhelmingly preferred starting the school year before Labor Day.

    Some 16,400 parents, students, school staff, principals, and community members responded to the survey the district sent out last September, Warthen-Canty said.

    Respondents also said they wanted more frequent breaks for longer durations to accommodate family vacations, as well as time to rest, support mental health, and prevent staff burnout.

    State law says districts must have a minimum of 180 student days, or a minimum of 900 instructional hours for elementary school students and 990 hours for middle and high school students. The district’s collective bargaining agreement with the teachers union also requires 188 teacher work days, as well as a minimum of 28 professional development hours.

    The district officials’ calendar recommendations will go to the school board for a vote before they are enacted.

    If approved, winter recess would be seven days in 2025-26 and eight days in 2026-27, while spring break would be five days both years.

    In addition to the five state and national holidays (Memorial Day, Independence Day, Christmas, Thanksgiving, and New Year’s Day), Philadelphia school district school holidays in 2025-26 and 2026-27 would include:

    • Labor Day
    • Rosh Hashanah
    • Yom Kippur
    • Indigenous Peoples Day
    • Veterans Day
    • Martin Luther King Jr. Day
    • Presidents Day
    • Lunar New Year
    • Eid al-Fitr
    • Good Friday
    • Eid al-Adha
    • Juneteenth

    This school year, both Indigenous Peoples Day and Veterans Day were school days.

    As for how the new calendar may interact with Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker’s commitment to “extended-day, extended-year” school: Deputy Superintendent Jermaine Dawson said this week the district has ensured any expansion of that program will work “alongside our calendar of school days.”

    This story was originally published at Chalkbeat, a nonprofit news site covering educational change in public schools.


    Get stories like these delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter

    Source link

  • Hands off Our Healthcare, Research, Education & Jobs (Higher Ed Labor United)

    Hands off Our Healthcare, Research, Education & Jobs (Higher Ed Labor United)

    Without mass resistance, these attacks will
    result in layoffs, program & school closures, and devastation to
    local economies that depend on the economic impact of our colleges and
    universities. Higher ed workers – long facing growing job precarity –
    are now facing unprecedented job insecurity.

    In February 19, at actions across the country, higher education workers, students, and allies will get in the streets and loudly proclaim: Hands off our healthcare, research, and jobs! 
     

    Source link

  • “Are Working Class Voters Done with Democrats?” (CUNY School of Labor and Urban Stidies)

    “Are Working Class Voters Done with Democrats?” (CUNY School of Labor and Urban Stidies)

    What’s at Stake for Labor:

    Project 2025 and the Department of Government Efficiency 

     

     

    Wednesday, February 5

    7:00pm – 8:30pm

     

    Virtual event via Zoom webinar. 

     

    Register:  

    slucuny.swoogo.com/5February2025

     

    

    Featured Speakers: 

    James Goodwin – Policy Director, Center for Progressive Reform

    Diana Reddy – Assistant Professor, UC Berkeley Law

    Arjun Singh – Senior Podcast Producer, The Lever

    Moderated by Samir Sonti – Assistant Professor, CUNY School of Labor and Urban Studies.

     

    What are the real costs to bear on workers–especially civil service and public sector workers – with Project 2025 and the establishment of Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency? What strategies can labor employ to counter this attack on working people and unions? How can looking back at previous far right policy projects help prepare us in our fight to protect workers? Join us to hear from law & policy experts and journalists as they discuss these urgent questions.

    Source link

  • Frances Perkins, Secretary if Labor (Friday’s Labor Folklore)

    Frances Perkins, Secretary if Labor (Friday’s Labor Folklore)

    Sources from which I summarized, paraphrased or quoted directly:

    Wikipedia, “President Biden designates Frances Perkins homestead as new national monument,” press release, 12/16/2022; Executive Order 14121, Section 3a report, Dec. 2024; Hall of Secretaries, U. S. Dept. of Labor.

    Source link

  • Department of Labor Publishes AI Framework for Hiring Practices

    Department of Labor Publishes AI Framework for Hiring Practices

    by CUPA-HR | October 16, 2024

    On September 24, the Department of Labor (DOL), along with the Partnership on Employment & Accessible Technology (PEAT), published the AI & Inclusive Hiring Framework. The framework is intended to be a tool to support the inclusive use of artificial intelligence in employers’ hiring technology, specifically for job seekers with disabilities.

    According to DOL, the framework was created in support of the Biden administration’s Executive Order on the Safe, Secure and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence. Issued in October 2023, the executive order directed the Secretary of Labor, along with other federal agency officials, to issue guidance and regulations to address the use and deployment of AI and other technologies in several policy areas. Notably, it also directed DOL to publish principles and best practices for employers to help mitigate harmful impacts and maximize potential benefits of AI as it relates to employees’ well-being.

    The new AI Framework includes 10 focus areas that cover issues impacting the recruitment and hiring of people with disabilities and contain information on maximizing the benefit of using and managing the risks associated with assessing, acquiring and employing AI hiring technology.

    The 10 focus areas are:

    1. Identify Employment and Accessibility Legal Requirements
    2. Establish Roles, Responsibilities and Training
    3. Inventory and Classify the Technology
    4. Work with Responsible AI Vendors
    5. Assess Possible Positive and Negative Impacts
    6. Provide Accommodations
    7. Use Explainable AI and Provide Notices
    8. Ensure Effective Human Oversight
    9. Manage Incidents and Appeals
    10. Monitor Regularly

    Under each focus area, DOL and PEAT provide key practices and considerations for employers to implement as they work through the AI framework. It is important to note, however, that the framework does not have force of law and that employers do not need to implement every practice or goal for every focus area at once. The goal of the framework is to lead employers to inclusive practices involving AI technology over time.

    DOL encourages HR personnel — along with hiring managers, DEIA practitioners, and others — to familiarize themselves with the framework. CUPA-HR will keep members apprised of any future updates relating to the use of AI in hiring practices and technology.



    Source link

  • Department of Labor Sends Overtime Rule to OIRA for Review – CUPA-HR

    Department of Labor Sends Overtime Rule to OIRA for Review – CUPA-HR

    by CUPA-HR | March 4, 2024

    On March 1, the Department of Labor (DOL)’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) sent the highly anticipated final rule to update Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) overtime regulations to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) for review. This is a required step in the regulatory process and acts as one of the last steps prior to releasing the text of the regulation to the public.

    OIRA, as part of the president’s Office of Management and Budget, is required to review all proposed and final rules, as well as all regulatory actions, before implementation. While OIRA has 90 days to conduct its review, in most cases, the review takes 30 to 60 days. This means the final rule could be released as early as the end of March or in April, which would meet WHD’s April 2024 target date for release as indicated in the Fall 2023 Regulatory Agenda.

    WHD issued the proposed rule to increase the minimum salary threshold under the FLSA overtime regulations in September 2023. In the proposed rule, WHD sought to increase the salary threshold from its current level of $35,568 annually to $60,209 — a nearly 70% increase.* The proposed rule also sought to implement automatic updates to the salary threshold that would occur every three years and would tie the updated salary threshold to the 35th percentile of weekly earnings of full-time salaried workers in the lowest-wage census region. Notably, the proposed rule did not include any changes to the duties requirements of the FLSA overtime regulations.

    Comments in response to the proposed rule were due in November 2023. WHD received over 33,000 comments in response to the proposed rule. CUPA-HR, joined by 49 other higher education associations, submitted comments, which made the following recommendations:

    1. DOL should not update the salary threshold at this time.
    2. DOL should lower the proposed minimum salary threshold and account for room and board.
    3. DOL should not implement automatic updates to the salary threshold.
    4. DOL should extend the effective date of any final rule implementing a higher salary threshold.

    The text of the final rule is not public until the rule is published in the Federal Register, so details of the finalized salary threshold and the timeframe for compliance are unknown at this time. While the rule is at OIRA, however, interested stakeholders can request a meeting with the administrator to discuss the proposed changes. CUPA-HR will request a meeting with OIRA to discuss our concerns with the proposed rule.

    CUPA-HR will continue to keep members apprised of all updates as it relates to the FLSA overtime final rule.

     

    * The discrepancy between our figure of $60,209 and the DOL’s preamble figure of $55,068 arises from DOL’s own projections based on anticipated wage growth. The DOL’s proposed rule is rooted in 2022 data (yielding the $55,068 figure), but a footnote in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking confirms that the salary threshold will definitely change by the time the final rule is issued to reflect the most recent data. Our comments, aiming to respond to the most probable salary threshold at the time a final rule is released, reference the DOL’s projected figure for Q1 2024, which is $60,209. We do not believe DOL will be able to issue a final rule before Q1 2024, so we are incorporating this projected figure into our response to the NPRM. In essence, our goal is to provide members with a clearer picture of the likely salary figure when the final rule comes into play.



    Source link