State and Local Enforcement Project
Commentary and Op-eds by Project Director Terri Gerstein
THE AMERICAN PROSPECT
New Process Gives Undocumented Workers Legal Status to Report Employer Abuse, The American Prospect, January 31, 2023.
The Real Victims of Cancel Culture Are America’s Workers, The American Prospect, September 5, 2022.
In Massachusetts, a Limit on Gig Companies’ Deceptions, The American Prospect, June 17, 2022.
What Amazon and Starbucks Don’t Let Us Know, The American Prospect, April 13, 2022.
Is Washington State About to Deprive Its Workers of Basic Rights, The American Prospect, March 2, 2022.
In Massachusetts, a Limit on Gig Companies’ Deceptions, The American Prospect, June 17, 2022.
Will Starbucks Bargain With Its Baristas, or Just Pretend To? The American Prospect, December 16, 2021.
Starbucks: Purveyor of Fresh Coffee and Stale Union-Busting, The American Prospect, November 23, 2021.
State Attorneys General Are Helping Workers in Hard Times, The American Prospect, September 7, 2020.
How States and Cities Can Protect Workers During the Pandemic, The American Prospect, May 15, 2020.
When Anti-Immigrant Mania Endangers Public Safety, The American Prospect, December 11, 2019.
Hard Lessons From the Hard Rock Hotel Collapse, The American Prospect, October 16, 2019.
Protect the Whistleblowers—and All Workers Who Speak Out, The American Prospect, October 8, 2019.
American Airlines Sues to Make Travelers Sicker, The American Prospect, August 12, 2019.
The Chamber Speaks: Forced Arbitration Is Actually Good for Workers!, The American Prospect, June 5, 2019 (co-author Heidi Shierholz).
How States Can Enforce Workers’ Rights When Trump and His Supremes Don’t Want To, (co-author David Seligman), The American Prospect, November 14, 2018.
When Anti-Immigrant Mania Endangers Public Safety, The American Prospect, December 11, 2019.
CNN Business
Gig companies want to change the rules about who qualifies as an employee. Here’s why they’re wrong, CNN Business, Oct. 14, 2020.
CT Insider
Connecticut should curb noncompetes, no matter what happens in D.C., Connecticut Insider, February 9, 2023.
The Guardian
These Americans are trapped in their jobs: they need to pay $10,000 to quit, The Guardian, April 8, 2018.
We need an agenda for new laws to prevent sexual harassment, (co-author Sharon Block), The Guardian, December 2, 2017.
The Hill
How states and employers can use work sharing to avoid more layoffs, The Hill, April 6, 2020 (co-author Sharon Block).
America needs paid sick leave laws to stop coronavirus from spreading, The Hill, March 4, 2020.
Why conservatives must take principled action for workers, The Hill, September 17, 2019.
Major companies have to prioritize workers in new corporate missions, The Hill, August 23, 2019 (co-author Jane Flanagan).
More states should follow new Colorado policy on wage theft, The Hill, May 30, 2019.
A paid leave plan cannot make you choose between kids or retirement, The Hill, August 9, 2018.
Voters should keep eye on 2018 races for state attorneys general, The Hill, June 15, 2018.
Labor Department’s program on wage theft enforcement is the wrong approach, The Hill, March 22, 2018.
Huffington Post Contributors’ Network
Human Trucker, Frozen Judge, Huffington Post Contributors’ Network, March 27, 2017
Protecting Workers in the Time of Trump, Huffington Post Contributors’ Network, March 21, 2017
Morning Consult
With OSHA as an Employer Advice Columnist, States and Cities Should Protect Workers from COVID-19, Morning Consult, August 10, 2020 (co-author Debbie Berkowitz).
Forget Covid! Trump Says Regulations Are the Problem, Morning Consult, June 1, 2020 (co-authors Frances Colon and Diane Thompson).
THE Nation
There’s a Way to Get More People Vaccinated—and It Doesn’t Involve the Lottery, The Nation, July 1, 2021 (co-author Lorelei Salas)
Stealing From Workers is a Crime. Why Don’t More Prosecutors See It That Way?, The Nation, May 24, 2018.
Trump’s Attacks on Immigrants Are a Gift for Bad Bosses, The Nation, April 24, 2017.
Bill O’Reilly Could Have Been Stopped Years Ago—Here’s How, The Nation, May 11, 2017.
NBC NEWS THINK
Students need to know reading, writing, and their rights at work, NBC News THINK, June 2, 2022.
Adding salary ranges to job listings stops people from wasting their time, NBC News THINK, May 16, 2022.
Covid mask mandates for travel have been lifted. Where do we go from here?, NBC News THINK, April 20, 2022.
Forced Arbitration in Workplace Sexual Assault Cases is Ending. But What About Other Disputes?, NBC News THINK, February 11, 2022.
Kim Kardashian is being sued for employment practices that are sadly common, NBC News THINK, May 26, 2021.
Labor Day is a time to recognize all unions do — to help health care, education, even marriage, NBC News THINK, September 7, 2020.
Ellen DeGeneres wasn’t fired for her show’s toxic workplace. Bosses often get off easy, NBC News THINK, August 19, 2020.
Noncompete agreements allow bosses to chain workers to their jobs. We need to free them, NBC News THINK, January 11, 2020.
New York Daily News
Can’t JetBlue please fly some must-mask planes?: An appeal to NYC’s hometown airline, NY Daily News, May 20, 2022.
Put the heat on the feds: OSHA must do more to protect workers from rising temperatures, The New York Daily News, July 17, 2018.
A clear-cut case for intervention to aid underpaid Uber & Lyft drivers, The New York Daily News, July 3, 2018.
How the Supreme Court just failed thousands of voters, The New York Daily News, June 11, 2018.
The New York Times
Don’t Buy the Republican Appeal to Workers, New York Times, October 29, 2022.
Other People’s Rotten Jobs Are Bad for Them. And for You, The New York Times, Sept. 6, 2021.
What Happened in California Is a Cautionary Tale for Us All, The New York Times, November 13, 2020.
End Forced Arbitration for Sexual Harassment. Then Do More, The New York Times, November 14, 2018.
The Dead-End-Job Trap, (co-author Sharon Block), The New York Times, July 12, 2018.
Supreme Court deals a blow to workers, (co-author Sharon Block), The New York Times, May 21, 2018.
Politico
How Corporations Keep Their Own Workers in Debt, Politico, Oct. 21, 2021.
The Progressive
It’s Time to Raise the Federal Minimum Wage, The Progressive, August 2, 2022.
Don’t Suppress Votes of New Citizens, The Progressive, November 18, 2019.
Route Fifty
How Local Governments Are Advancing Workers’ Rights, and Why Even More Should Get Involved, Route Fifty, June 28, 2022 (co-author LiJia Gong).
How Governments Can Boost Workplace Safety After Supreme Court Wrongly Halts Vaccine Mandate, Route Fifty, Jan. 21, 2022.
The Pandemic Response Measures State and Local Governments Should Move on Now, Route Fifty, April 14, 2020 (co-author Naomi Walker).
Slate
How Did Children End Up as Factory Workers in America Again?, Slate, March 1, 2023 (co-author Robert Carey).
The Supreme Court’s Conservative Supermajority May Sabotage Unions’ Right to Strike, Slate, January 11, 2023 (co-author Jenny Hunter).
The Supreme Court Could Not Have Timed Its Latest Attack on Unions Any Worse, Slate, October 14, 2022 (co-author Jenny Hunter).
The Supreme Court Could Not Have Timed Its Latest Attack on Unions Any Worse, Slate, October 14, 2022 (co-author Jenny Hunter)
Who Has to Work During a Hurricane? Slate, September 28, 2022.
Railroad Companies Almost Inflicted an Economic Disaster on the U.S., Slate, September 15, 2022 (co-author Jenny Hunter).
Royal Dutch Shell and the Rise of the Ventriloquist Employer, Slate, August 19, 2019.
The Trump Administration’s New Overtime Policy Leaves Millions of Workers Unprotected, Slate, March 13, 2019.
Forced Arbitration Is Unjust and Deeply Unpopular. Can Congress End It?, Slate, March 1, 2019.
Google Is Ending Forced Arbitration in a Monumental Win for Its Workers, Slate, February 22, 2019.
Workers Deserve Better Than Marco Rubio’s Woeful Noncompete Clause Bill, Slate, February 14, 2019 (co-author Jane Flanagan).
Elizabeth Warren’s Plan for Corporate Boards Would Be a Boon to Businesses, Slate, February 13, 2019.
Trump’s Labor Board Just Gave Its Blessing to One of the Most Deplorable Worker Abuses in the Country, Slate, January 31, 2019.
Howard Schultz’s Claims of “Centrism” Are Laughable Given His Record as Starbucks CEO, Slate, January 29, 2019.
The Shutdown Shows Why Progressives Need to Make Labor-Law Enforcement a Top Priority, Slate, January 23, 2019.
Five Years Since It Was First Introduced, It’s Time to Renew the New Family Leave Act, Slate, December 12, 2018.
Finally, NYC Is Doing Right by Lyft and Uber Drivers, Slate, December 7, 2018.
Two Top Conservative Judges Offer Plan to End Discovery for Most Litigants, Slate, December 6, 2018.
Trump Is Even Worse at Enforcing White-Collar Crimes Than George W. Bush Was, Slate, December 4, 2018.
Newly Elected Democratic Governors and Legislatures Should Enact These Labor Initiatives Right Away, Slate, November 26, 2018.
Why a Vote for State Attorney General Is One of the Most Important Ballots to Cast on Tuesday, Slate, November 2, 2018.
The Dystopian Sci-Fi Flick Sorry to Bother You Is the Perfect Film for Labor Day, Slate, September 3, 2018.
Brett Kavanaugh Has His Own “Frozen Trucker” Case, Slate, August 7, 2018.
State, Local or Legal Specialty Publications
Opinion: Why Coloradans should be skeptical about gig companies’ promises, Colorado Sun, January 21, 2021.
Are Employment Contracts With Unenforceable Terms Unethical? The National Law Journal, June 7, 2019. (co-author Brian Shearer).
A Great Father’s Day gift? Support for earned sick leave, The Journal News, June 16, 2017.
Teen Vogue
Noncompete clauses: What Are They, and Why Is the FTC Trying to Ban Them? Teen Vogue, January 18, 2023.
Amazon and the Girl Scouts Are Unlikely—and Disturbing—New Partners, Teen Vogue, Feb. 4, 2022.
UnionTrack
Unions Should Connect With High School Students Before They Graduate, UnionTrack, Feb. 21, 2023.
The Washington Post
Unions aren’t against vaccines. They just want a say, The Washington Post, Sept. 16, 2021.
Papa John’s should have parted with Schnatter long before his notorious phone call, The Washington Post, July 17, 2018.
I worked for Eric Schneiderman. And I still believe in government, The Washington Post, May 11, 2018.