Labor Relations Today

“It feels so good to come back to work,” said Nelson Aquino, 27, who has worked drying off cars at Sunny Day for a year. “It feels really good - after all that was said - he had to give us back our jobs.”

National Labor Relations Board investigators are also looking into whether the striking employees are owed backpay because the owner actually fired them after they walked off the job. No one from Sunny Day Car Wash cared to comment on the proceedings.

New York Bus Drivers' Strike at Possible Breaking Point: Michael Benjamin of the New York Post writes that at noon today, the New York City Office of Pupil Transportation is set to open the bidding for the city's K-12 bus routes. While the bidding process is subject to the city's review process, servicing on the new contracts can start before the new school year begins.

The new bidding is particularly significant because several bus companies are not subject to union contracts and thus will be able to render more competitive bids. Assuming that unionized bus companies do not break their contracts with their workers, these unionized companies may not submit bids because they will not be competitive enough.

The bus drivers' strike, now in its fourth week, has been more than an aggravation for children and parents. Children with disabilities have been disproportionately affected and their current attendance rate continues to hover at about 20 percentage points below average. We have been following this story for some time and will keep you posted as it inches towards a resolution.

NFL Players' Union Pushing for Overhaul of Player Care: Brent Schrotenboer of USA Today writes that the NFL Players' Association (NFLPA), led by executive director DeMaurice Smith, is pushing hard for the National Football League (NFL) to overhaul its current system as it relates to player health. During Super Bowl week, Smith specifically targeted San Diego Chargers doctor David Chao, who allegedly has "committed repeated negligent acts in his care and treatment" of patients. An independent review board found no basis for a complaint, but the Players' Union isn't satisfied.

"The concerns we have about Dr. Chao remain," NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith told USA TODAY Sports in a statement Monday. "The fact is that despite having previous malpractice liability (awards) against him, neither the Chargers nor the NFL initiated an inquiry or provided any oversight of the doctor the team selected to provide care for our players."

Unfortunately for the players, independent authorities see no reason why the NFL won't continue with business as usual as far as player safety is concerned.

"Honestly there's no reason why (team management) should care," said Andrew Blecher, a California doctor who specializes in sports medicine. "They want a team doctor who is going to do what they want. If the comfort level works with them, they don't want some new guy coming in who's going to change everything around."