How to strengthen U.S. labor standards enforcement to protect workers’ rights

Equitable Growth grantees Janice Fine, Daniel Galvin, and Jenn Round of the Center for Innovation in Worker Organization at Rutgers University outline how labor standards enforcement agencies can strategically target high-violation industries. Event video includes presentation and Q&A.

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Many businesses violated the law and openly disregarded COVID-19 restrictions. And many pandemic idled workers (restaurant employees in particular) do not want to work for employers who chose to break the law on indoor dining, and other gathering restrictions, fearing these rogue businesses (who ignored restrictions) will not comply with lawful safety measures in the future, and wonder if these employers will continue to break health and safety laws and other customer/employee safeguards knowing now there is little to no enforcement due to overly eager regulators being anxious to put this pandemic behind them.
However, a declared "state of emergency" is still in effect in the U.S.
In addition there has been this overwhelming demonizing of those who remain unemployed by no fault of their own, and some even fear workplace retaliation by a now emboldened UI benefit-shaming management and/or public.
Some have even expressed fear of potential for violence against them due to this public chastising of the pandemic jobless.