The course examines the basic principles of labor law, a body of rulings, regulations, and legislative acts governing workplace interactions between workers and management/private ownership. It focuses on the major federal legislation in this area - the National Labor Relations Act - as opposed to other laws governing workplace conduct (wage-hour, anti-discrimination, etc.), state laws, or those pertaining to public sector employees. The class covers the history of the Act, who is covered under its provisions, the jurisdiction of the National Labor Relations Board and judicial review of its actions, how unions are formed, collective bargaining, unfair labor practices and the procedures to remedy same, and economic weapons used in labor disputes (strikes, boycotts, lock-outs, etc.).

The class also analyzes labor law from a multi-disciplinary perspective, with attention given to the psychology of groups, economic history, politics, and emerging cultural trends (the rise of social media as a means of union organizing, for example). It is the goal of this course to provide the student a firm grounding in the basics of labor law, with a practical appreciation of why it creates such passions today.

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