The Nation, December 20, 2012, Thursday

The Nation

December 20, 2012, Thursday

The Nation (full article)

The Great Walmart Walkout

Kate Bronfenbrenner, who directs labor education and research at Cornell University, says the difference between the current campaign and the previous one is stark: “One is an organizing campaign, and the other was a negative PR campaign.” Century Foundation fellow Amy Dean, former president of California’s South Bay Labor Council, calls the current effort “an outgrowth of the learning that the UFCW has done” based on “what hasn’t worked in the past.”

AOL Jobs, December 19, 2012, Wednesday

AOL Jobs

December 19, 2012, Wednesday

AOL Jobs (full article)

The New Face Of The Union Movement: Female, Minority -- And Poorly Paid

"For so long, labor avoided low-wage service jobs," notes Lowell Turner, professor of international and comparative labor at the Industrial Labor Relations School at Cornell. "But now this is the majority of jobs. If [unions are] not elevating these jobs, we'll have a whole class of workers living in poverty."

Daily KOS, December 18, 2012, Tuesday

Daily KOS

December 18, 2012, Tuesday

Daily KOS (full article)

Walmart tells workers that if they unionize, bonuses and vacations 'might go away'

"To be safe," added [Cornell labor law professor Lance] Compa, "management normally has to couch the possible loss of benefits in a discussion about collective bargaining, saying that bargaining is a two way street, wages and benefits are negotiable, management has the right to bargain hard, you might lose some benefits, you might gain some benefits, maybe nothing will change except you’ll be paying dues, and so on."

Yahoo! Finance, December 17, 2012, Monday

Yahoo! Finance

December 17, 2012, Monday

Yahoo! Finance (full article)

Who Can Still Afford State U?

"Over the last 25 or 30 years, public higher education has lost out in the competition for state funds with Medicaid," says Cornell University professor Ronald Ehrenberg, director of the Cornell Higher Education Research Institute. "There's so much pressure to spend money on other things."

The Times-Tribune, December 16, 2012, Sunday

The Times-Tribune

December 16, 2012, Sunday

The Times-Tribune (full article)

Pot legal in some states, but using it might breach employee rules

John Bishop, Ph.D., a professor of human resources at Cornell University said random drug testing is rare because it is expensive.

More common is drug testing upon hiring. It becomes more important for high security jobs, truck drivers and others where the safety of others is an issue he said.

"I don't expect a quick change in labor policies," he said. "Anytime there is a change in society norms, workplace policies evolve."

NPR, December 14, 2012, Friday

NPR

December 14, 2012, Friday

NPR (full article)

In Midwest Union Fights, Michigan Shows 2010 Election Still Trumps 2012

Tuesday's passage of "right to work" legislation in a state dominated by the auto industry and the historically powerful United Auto Workers was a surprising "smack in the face" to unions, says labor expert Lee Adler, especially given President Obama's nearly 10-point win in the state last month.

The action by the GOP-controlled legislature in a post-election lame duck session is the surest sign yet, Adler says, of how losses suffered by more union-friendly Democrats two years ago in key statehouse races continue to reverberate.

"The November election did not solve the losses suffered in 2010," says Adler, of Cornell University's School of Industrial and Labor Relations and the author of books on organized labor's history, and future.

Wall Street Journal, December 13, 2012, Thursday

Wall Street Journal

December 13, 2012, Thursday

Wall Street Journal (full article)

JFK Guards Set to Strike in Union Bid

Federal law protects collective action by non-unionized workers, but that doesn't mean they don't face risks in striking, said Ken Margolies, senior associate at the Worker Institute at Cornell University's School of Industrial and Labor Relations. He cited a Wendy's worker who was fired after the fast-food strike.

CNN Money, December 11, 2012, Tuesday

CNN Money

December 11, 2012, Tuesday

CNN Money (full article)

Michigan bills weakening union power signed into law

Employees in right-to-work states have lower wages, on average, than their counterparts elsewhere, according to Richard Hurd, professor of labor studies at the ILR School at Cornell University. That's because the unions are weaker in those states and aren't as effective in bargaining for higher wages. Only two-thirds of workers join unions in right-to-work states, on average.

WorldatWork's workspan magazine, December 2012

WorldatWork's workspan magazine

December 2012

An monthly column in workspan® applying scholarly research to the "real world" by ICS Director Kevin Hallock.

Top Athlete Pay

Is all talent at the top earning more?

The Huffington Post, November 29, 2012, Thursday

The Huffington Post

November 29, 2012, Thursday

The Huffington Post (full article)

Fast Food Strikes In NYC Hit Wendy's, Burger King, McDonald's As Workers Demand Better Pay

In the past, fast-food workers have tended to move onto other jobs instead of fighting for better conditions, according to Ken Margolies, a senior associate at the Worker Institute at Cornell University. The fact that fast-food chains are owned by various franchisees also makes unionization and collective bargaining difficult, he said.

The New York Times, November 28, 2012, Wednesday

The New York Times

November 28, 2012, Wednesday

The New York Times (full article)

In Drive to Unionize, Fast-Food Workers Walk Off the Job

Richard W. Hurd, a labor relations professor at Cornell, said the organizations backing the fast-food campaign seemed intent on finding pressure points to push the restaurants to improve wages and benefits.

“But it’s going to be a lot harder for them to win union recognition,” he said. “It will be harder to unionize them than carwash workers because the parent companies will fight hard against it, because they worry if you unionize fast-food outlets in New York, that’s going to have a lot of ramifications elsewhere.”

Bankrate.com, November 26, 2012, Monday

Bankrate.com

November 26, 2012, Monday

Bankrate.com (full article)

How US automakers turned things around

The recent recession brought American automakers to the brink. For a time, it looked like Detroit's glory days were over, as cash-strapped drivers sat on their wallets, enjoying lower auto insurance rates on aging cars held together with bubble gum and chicken wire.

But General Motors Corp., Ford and Chrysler now are posting strong profits. What accounts for the turnaround? In the following interview, Arthur C. Wheaton, director of western New York labor and environmental programs at Cornell University's ILR School, offers some thoughts.

Reuters, November 26, 2012, Monday

Reuters

November 26, 2012, Monday

Reuters (full article)

Thousands protest in Bangladesh, blaze draws U.S. scrutiny

"Most people are just looking for a bargain and they don't have the time or the inclination to find out who's making them and should we buy this stuff or not," said James Gross, a professor of labor in the school of industrial and labor relations at Cornell University in New York.

The Courier.com, November 23, 2012, Friday

The Courier.com

November 23, 2012, Friday

The Courier.com (full article)

Shoppers put technology to use

Even those without the Amazon application can photograph books, microwaves, toasters or tools, for example, and compare them with online prices, said Louis Hyman, assistant professor at Cornell University's Industrial & Labor Relations School.

"This is a huge problem," Hyman said. "A lot of company retailers have complained that customers are coming into their stores and reviewing the merchandise and then getting a better deal online."

The Nation, November 19, 2012, Monday

The Nation

Nomvember 19, 2012, Monday

The Nation (full article)

Walmart Asks a Judge to Block Historic Strikes

“Do I believe that the UFCW is organizing these actions? Yes,” said Kate Bronfenbrenner, Cornell’s director of labor education and research. “But are they in violation of the National Labor Relations Act? No. As written, these are not recognitional strikes…. the UFCW is not doing anything illegal.”

Workforce Management, November 19, 2012, Monday

Workforce Management

November 19, 2012, Monday

Workforce Management

Costly Degrees in HR Could Be Wise Choice vs. Certification

With graduate studies in human resources or business costing from about $25,000 to more than $50,000 per year, why make the financial investment? Why not just snag a certification as an HR professional and call it good?

Because in today's business climate, where expectations of HR professionals have never been higher, that's not good enough.

So says Christopher Collins, associate professor in Cornell University's School of Industrial and Labor Relations. "The job is so much more complicated than it was 10 or 15 years ago. The demands placed on HR generalists in particular have grown so they have to be so much more in tune with business strategy, operational strategy and finance than ever before."

Bloomberg Businessweek, November 16, 2012, Friday

Bloomberg Businessweek

November 16, 2012, Friday

Bloomberg Businessweek (full article)

Why Mommy Can't Get Ahead

A mini-industry has sprung up around the question of why women don’t go as far, and earn less, than their male counterparts. But the answer is actually straightforward. After accounting for experience and education, as well as occupation—male-dominated fields tend to be higher-paying than female-dominant ones—the pay gap falls from 23 percent to about 9 percent, according to Cornell University labor economists Francine Blau and Lawrence Kahn.

CNN, November 16, 2012, Friday

CNN

November 16, 2012

CNN (full article)

Wal-Mart workers plan Black Friday walkout

"Even if there aren't that many people, it could have an effect, because their campaign in front of stores could discourage shoppers," said Ken Margolies, senior associate at the Worker Institute a Cornell University.

The strike could have an even greater impact if workers from its supply centers participate, according to Margolies. He said it could impede distribution of merchandise on what is usually the busiest day of the year.

Inc. Magazine, November 20, 2012, Tuesday

Inc. Magazine

November 20, 2012, Tuesday

Inc. Magazine (full article)

Your Own Private Whale: Leadership Lessons From Moby Dick

By Samuel Bacharach, professor of labor management at Cornell and director of Cornell's Institute of Workplace Studies.