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What I've Been Reading This Week


Some readers might have seen that the two nominees to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission had their nominations clear the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee earlier this week.   The vote for the Republican nominee Sharon Fast Gustafson was along party lines, 13 - 10.  The vote for the renomination of current Democratic Commissioner Charlotte Burrows advanced 23 - 0.  Both nominees headed to the Senate for a final vote, in which they were both confirmed yesterday before Congress left for its August recess.  While that was newsworthy, I wanted to spend time looking at a few other developments this week that made headlines.

As always, below are a couple articles that caught my eye this week.


Bipartisan Paid Leave Proposal Introduced in Congress

This past Tuesday, Republican Senator Bill Cassidy and Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema introduced a proposal that could garner support from both sides of the aisle.  Under the proposal from the Republican and Democratic Senators, parents would have the option to receive $5,000.00 up front for child care which would in turn be borrowed against their future child tax credits.  (In exchange for the $5,000.00, parents would receive a reduced rate of $1,500.00/year for 10 years in child tax credits.)  As Senator Cassidy noted, parents could use this $5,000.00 for diapers or help pay for someone to care for their child if the parent has to return to work.  With paid leave continuing to remain a hot button issue, it will be interesting to see if this legislation gains much traction.


Number of Anonymous Workplace Harassment Lawsuits Spikes

Bloomberg Law published an article at the start of the week which reported that during the current #MeToo era, there has been a sharp increase in the number of anonymous workplace harassment suits filed.  The number of anonymous suits more than doubled from 2017 to 2018 with many speculating that by the end of 2019, the number of anonymous suits filed will equal last year.  Given the hesitancy of many victims to come forward with their real name (for fear of being criticized, retaliated against, etc.), it should not come as much of a surprise that there has been a sharp increase in the number of anonymous workplace harassment suits recently.


Unfair Labor Practice Charge Filed Against Sanders' Presidential Campaign

In late July, an unnamed individual (who many speculate was at one time a campaign staffer), filed an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board.  The charge identifies seven different instances of alleged unfair labor practices, including allegations that the Sanders' campaign terminated employees for joining or supporting a union as well as a claim that the campaign improperly interrogated employees about their union activities.  The above link is to a copy of the redacted charge itself.  Well worth a review for those looking for more information.


Paid Leave & the 2020 Democratic Presidential Candidates

Readers might have watched one (or both nights) of the Democratic Presidential debates earlier this week.  Others might have intentionally avoided it altogether.  Regardless of your (lack of) interest in the debates, paid leave is sure to be a hot button issue on the campaign trail during both the primary and the general election.  Politico has a breakdown of how twenty of the Democratic candidates for President stand on the issue of paid leave.  For those looking for a concise breakdown of the position on the matter from each candidate, look no further.

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