In 2021, only 11.6% of the workforce in the United States was unionized — down a half a percentage point from 2020. But after decades of decline, there are also hopeful signs for unions and the rights of workers. The rise of the gig economy, years of flat wages, and the economic turbulence unleashed by the Covid-19 pandemic have given rise to a new movement, from Amazon warehouses to graduate schools, with a particular focus on how to protect workers’ rights. In this moment, what can law schools do to advocate for workers, from scholarship and policy papers to clinics and classes? 

Three experts talk about the past, present, and future of this movement with Berkeley Law Dean Erwin Chemerinsky: Sameer Ashar, a clinical professor of law and associate dean for equity initiatives at the University of California, Irvine, School of Law, and director of the school’s Workers, Law, and Organizing Clinic; Sharon Block, a professor of practice and the executive director of the Labor and Worklife Program at Harvard Law School; and Catherine Fisk, Barbara Nachtrieb Armstrong Professor of Law at Berkeley Law and faculty director of the school’s Center for Law and Work.

About: 

More Just from Berkeley Law is a podcast about how law schools can and must play a role in solving society’s most difficult problems. 

The rule of law — and the role of the law — has never been more important. In these difficult times, law schools can, and must, play an active role in finding solutions. But how? Each episode of More Just starts with a problem, then explores potential solutions, featuring Dean Erwin Chemerinsky as well as other deans, professors, students, and advocates, about how they’re making law schools matter. 

Have a question about teaching or studying law, or a topic you’d like Dean Chemerinsky to explore? Email us at morejust@berkeley.edu and tell us what’s on your mind, and follow @MoreJustPod on Twitter.

For a transcript, please visit the episode page on the Berkeley Law podcast hub.

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