The Death of Labor Law?

Abstract

This review tells three interlocking tales of decline, each with its respective prognosis for recovery: the declines of labor law scholarship, labor law, and organized labor. The relationship between the latter two, and the role that a reformed labor law might play in reviving organized labor, are matters of continuing controversy. In the meantime, two developments on the ground suggest a way forward for organized labor, labor law, and labor law scholars. Activist unions have found success with a new organizing model: neutrality and card-check agreements. Elsewhere, anti-sweatshop activists are developing increasingly sophisticated supplier codes and monitoring schemes to improve labor standards in developing countries. Both strategies, with their basically contractual architecture, exemplify what regulatory scholars are calling "new governance." These strategies suggest a potential way around the roadblocks that meet labor law reform proposals, and toward more agile and responsive forms of workplace governance.

Keywords: labor law, collective bargaining, unions, employment

JEL Classification: K31