A Primer on American Labor Law

Since its publication more than a decade ago, A Primer on American Labor Law has served as an easily accessible guide to the development, principles, and characteristics of American labor law. The third edition incorporates a number of significant developments that have taken place since 1986. These include new precedent under the Railway Labor Act (covering both railroads and airlines), the expansion of wrongful discharge litigation (which has become increasingly important as the unorganized sector of the work force continues to expand), new forms of protection against discrimination afforded by the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and the Civil Rights Act of 1991, the consent decree between the U.S. Department of Justice and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, and the continued success of unions representing professional athletes. William B. Gould IV is Charles A. Beardsley Professor of Law at Stanford Law School. An impartial arbitrator of labor disputes since 1965, he is a member of the Clinton Administration's Committee on the Future of Worker-Management Relations. He is the author of Agenda for Reform: The Future of Employment Relationships and the Law.