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    October 31, 2023 HUMAN RIGHTS

    Introduction

    by Robin R. Runge

    On August 26, 2023, the United States celebrated the 60th anniversary of the March on Washington. Recognized as a critical moment in the civil rights movement, it was at its core a march to address systemic racism in our labor and employment laws. Envisioned by A. Phillip Randolph, a well-known labor leader, to protest racial discrimination in employment against Black Americans, it was alternatively known as the March of Jobs and Freedom. Over a quarter million people led by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the Congress of Racial Equality, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, and the National Urban League descended on the Capitol and heard the now famous “I Have a Dream” speech from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Not long thereafter, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was signed into law, Title VII of which prohibits discrimination in employment based on race, ethnicity, sex, color, and religion.

    Less than four years later, on February 12, 1968, the sanitation worker strike began in Memphis after the deaths of two Black workers. Mostly Black workers, the sanitation workers made $1.60 an hour as laborers and $1.90 an hour as garbage truck drivers, often working unpaid overtime, forcing them to take second jobs to make ends meet. They demanded increased wages, overtime pay, increased safety, and other protections. Led by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees and the NAACP, they marched with signs in black and white stating “I AM A MAN.” On April 3, 1968, Dr. King came to Memphis and made his “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech the day before he was assassinated in support of the striking workers. The strike ended on April 16, 1968, with a settlement including union recognition and increased wages.

    On February 12, 1968, the sanitation worker strike began in Memphis after the deaths of two Black workers.

    On February 12, 1968, the sanitation worker strike began in Memphis after the deaths of two Black workers.

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    The Fair Labor Standards Act, adopted in 1938, excluded domestic workers, agricultural workers, and tipped workers from its minimum wage and overtime protections, creating the regular workweek and prohibiting child labor, intentionally denying Black men and women access to economic and social rights. Similarly, a significant percentage of Black men, Mexican American men, Native American men, and women were excluded from Social Security, unemployment insurance, and the right to organize under the National Labor Relations Act.

    Today, the majority of workers in low-paying, insecure, and unsafe jobs in the United States are Black and other people of color, including immigrants and LGBTQI-identifying individuals. As we mark the 85th anniversary of the Fair Labor Standards Act this year and the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act next year, the occupational segregation and exclusion of labor and employment opportunities continue. Racial and sex and gender based harassment and violence persist in the workplace, necessitating ongoing leadership by the legal profession to overcome it. 

    As we see a resurgence of the labor movement, with workers leading organizing campaigns walking out on strike, risking their income to demand livable wages and safe working conditions in diverse occupations, their bravery reminds us of the need to continue to advocate for racial and gender justice in our labor and employment laws to ensure equal opportunity.

    In this edition of Human Rights magazine, we hear from experts describing ongoing efforts to address systemic and institutionalized discrimination and oppression in the world of work through enforcement of existing law, worker organizing, and policy and legislative advocacy. Only by confronting how racism, sexism, and other forms of discrimination and oppression continue to form the basis of our employment and labor laws can we begin to effectively address these abuses and achieve true equity.

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    Robin R. Runge

    Distinguished Professorial Lecturer in Law at The George Washington University Law School, 2023-24 Chair ABA Civil Rights and Social Justice Section

    Robin R. Runge, J.D., is an internationally recognized legal expert on preventing and addressing gender-based violence and harassment in the world of work. She is a consultant and a Distinguished Professorial Lecturer in Law at The George Washington University Law School, where she teaches Domestic Violence Law and directs the Workers’ Rights Division of the Access to Justice Clinic.