Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface to the Fifth Edition
- Preface to the Fourth Edition
- Preface to the Third Edition
- Preface to the Second Edition
- Preface to the First Edition
- 1 An Overview
- 2 Industrial Relations and Labor Law before Modern Legislation
- 3 The National Labor Relations Act and Related Labor Law
- 4 Unfair Labor Practices
- 5 Establishing the Collective Bargaining Relationship: Organization and Recognition
- 6 Economic Pressure and Bargaining Tactics in the Established Relationship
- 7 Remedies, the Labor Reform Bill of 1978, and the Employee Free Choice Bill of 2009
- 8 Dispute Resolution in the Established Relationship
- 9 The Duty of Fair Representation
- 10 The Public Sector
- 11 Public-Interest Labor Law
- 12 Conclusion
- Index
- References
3 - The National Labor Relations Act and Related Labor Law
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 June 2013
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface to the Fifth Edition
- Preface to the Fourth Edition
- Preface to the Third Edition
- Preface to the Second Edition
- Preface to the First Edition
- 1 An Overview
- 2 Industrial Relations and Labor Law before Modern Legislation
- 3 The National Labor Relations Act and Related Labor Law
- 4 Unfair Labor Practices
- 5 Establishing the Collective Bargaining Relationship: Organization and Recognition
- 6 Economic Pressure and Bargaining Tactics in the Established Relationship
- 7 Remedies, the Labor Reform Bill of 1978, and the Employee Free Choice Bill of 2009
- 8 Dispute Resolution in the Established Relationship
- 9 The Duty of Fair Representation
- 10 The Public Sector
- 11 Public-Interest Labor Law
- 12 Conclusion
- Index
- References
Summary
The National Labor Relations Act of 1935 forms the basis of legal regulation of collective bargaining in the private sector. Other statutes, such as the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, provide substantive guarantees for individual employees who work for employers engaged in interstate commerce and a “floor” below which workers should not fall. In the case of the FLSA, minimum wages and maximum hours are provided. The Walsh-Healy Act and the Davis-Bacon Act provide minimum conditions for employees of government contractors, although the applicability of so-called prevailing wage legislation remains a matter of dispute.
The minimum wage reached $5.15 per hour in 1997 and $7.25 in 2009. Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa has said that from 1968 through 2012 the minimum wage has been reduced by approximately 30 percent, and he has thus introduced a bill to raise it to $9.88 per hour. In light of continued lethargy at the national level, ten states raised their minimum wage at the beginning of 2013, such as Washington, which now provides $9.19 per hour; Oregon, $8.95; Vermont, $8.60; and Connecticut, $8.50 per hour. During the 2008 campaign President Obama called for amending the federal statute so as to provide for $9.50 per hour in more states and localities and to provide for superior benefits. Failure to address the minimum wage in recent years is undoubtedly a factor in increased income and wealth inequality, a subject that finally began to get some measure of notice in 2011 and 2012.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- A Primer on American Labor Law , pp. 29 - 76Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2013