Labor Cafe Sessions, 2015–16

Friday | April 15, 2016 | 5 PM | Geddes Hall, Coffee House

Topic: “Labor on Campus (Notre Dame & beyond).”

Facilitator: Members of the Progressive Student Alliance

Friday | April 1, 2016 | 5 PM  | Geddes Hall, Coffee House​

Topic: “The Displaced Persons of Damascus: Syrian Refugees, Work, and International Politics.”
Facilitator: Undergraduate Julie Mardini (AMST ’19) 

Resources:

• “From Syria to Rio: refugee Yusra Mardini targets Olympic swimming spot,” The Guardian, Mar. 18, 2016
• “Protracted Displacement: Syrian Refugees in Turkey,” Global Labour Column, Mar. 2016
• “The Battle for Skilled Syrian Labor,” Handelsblatt, Mar. 24, 2016
• “Absence of Syrian Refugee Camps in Lebanon Heats Up Labor Competition and Local Tensions,” IPI Global Observatory, Mar. 17, 2014

Friday | February 19, 2016 | 5 PM | Snite Museum of Art

Topic: Henry Mosler’s “Forging the Cross,” a painting from the permanent collection on special exhibit

Facilitator: Ms. Bridget O’Brien Hoyt, Curator of Education (Academic Programs) at the Snite Museum of Art

Resources:

• The Snite Museum of Art produced a brochure, “In Dialogue,”  to accompany the January-March 2016 special exhibit of Mosler’s painting (see right). The feature included contributions from several Notre Dame faculty members.

Friday | February 4, 2016 | 5 PM / Geddes Hall, Coffee House​

Topic: Recent trends in U.S. employment law

Facilitator: Law student Lowell Ritter (ND ’17) 

Resources:

• ​”How worker-friendly laws changed life as a server in San Francisco restaurants,” Washington Post 01122016
• ​”​Lyft Drivers Still Aren’t Employees, but What About Uber Drivers?,” Atlantic 01272016
• ​”Supreme Court Rules Against Worker Pay for Screenings in Amazon Warehouse Case,” New York Times 12092014​
• “A.G. Schneiderman Announces Settlements With Two Major National Retailers Over Violations Of ‘Ban The Box’ Law,” New York Attorney General’s Office Press Release 01202016
• “Accused of Retaliating Against Workers, Walmart Says It Closed Stores Over Plumbing Problems,” Slate 04202015
• “Wal-Mart strikes lawful, must reinstate workers: NLRB judge,” Reuters 01222016​

Friday | January 22, 2016 | 5 PM | Geddes Hall Coffee House

Topic: Abusive management and hostile work environments
Facilitator: Professor Charlice Hurst (Management) 

Resources:

• ​“​Inside Amazon: Wrestling Big​ ​Ideas in a Bruising Workplace​,” New York Times​ 08152015
• “​Jeff Bezos and Amazon Employees Join Debate Over Its Culture​,” New York Times 08172015
• “​Why the ‘Best Places to Work’ Often Aren’t​,” New York Times 12192014
• “The Consulting Firms With The Best Work/Life Balance,” Forbes​ 09042015
• “The Tao of Paul Polman,” Washington Post 052102015

Friday | November 20, 2015 | 5 PM | Geddes Hall, Coffee House

Topic: “The Right to Unite vs. The Right to Work: Public Sector Workers, Unions, and the U.S. Supreme Court”
Facilitator: Professor Barbara Fick (Law School) 

Resources:

• Alliance for Justice, “The Right to Unite” (video)
• Alliance for Justice, “The Right to Unite: Film Guide”
• Chuck Ross, “Supreme Court Deals Blow to Unions,” Daily Caller, Jun. 30, 2014
• Stephanie Simon, “For Unions, Not a Fatal Verdict,” Politico, Jun. 30, 2014
• Jim Waters, “Bluegrass Beacon: To Join or Not Join Unions? That is the (Right-to-Work) Question,”Bluegrass Institute, Jul. 14, 2014

Friday | October 30, 2015 | 5: PM | Geddes Hall,  Coffee House

Topic: Undocumented immigrants, labor markets, and labor rights
Facilitator: Undergraduate Ricky Clark (ITM/POLS ’16)

Resources:

• Adam Davidson, “Debunking the Myth of the Job-Stealing Immigrant” The New York Times Magazine (2015)
• Steven Greenhouse, “Workers Organize, but Don’t Unionize, to Get Protection Under Labor Law” The New York Times (2015)
• Paul Harris, “Undocumented workers’ grim reality: speak out on abuse and risk deportation” The Guardian (2013)
• Stuart Anderson, “More Work Visas, Less Illegal Immigration” Forbes (2015)
• Michelle Chen, “Farmworkers Dig Into the New ‘Blue Card’ Plan” In These Times (2013)

Friday | October 2, 2015 | 5 PM |Geddes Hall,  Coffee House

Topic: “Student-athlete-as-workers” question

Facilitator; Undergraduate Jimmy Firth (ITM ’16) 

Resources:

• ​Kemberlee Kaye “NLRB Dismisses Ruling that Would Allow College Athletes to Unionize” (Legal Insurrection)
• Dan Barry “Notre Dame President Stands Firm Amid Shifts in College Athletics” (New York Times)
• John Powers “Paying Stipends to College Athletes Remains a Divisive Issue” (Boston Globe)
• Marc Edelman and Zev J. Eigen “Should College Athletes Be Allowed to Unionize” (Wall Street Journal)

Friday | September 18, 2015 | 5 PM | Geddes Hall,  Coffee House

Topic: The minimum wage debate
Facilitator: Undergraduate Katie Luotto (HIST ’17) 

Resources:

• Marty Wolfson, “Raising the Minimum Wage is the Right Thing to Do”, South Bend Tribune
• U.S. Department of Labor, “Minimum Wage Mythbusters”
• James Pethokoukis, “Warren Buffet Explains Why a $15 Minimum Wage Is Bad for Workers,” American Enterprise Institute
• Reihan Salam, “The Fight Against 15,” Slate
• Oren Cass, “A Smarter Way to Raise Paychecks,” The New York Times