Piper Lecture in Labor Law

Since 1979, the Kenneth M. Piper Memorial Lecture in Labor Law has brought together experts from labor, management and academia to debate current issues in labor relations. The lecture series is underwritten by the Kenneth M. Piper Endowment, which was established in 1981 by the gift of Mrs. Kenneth M. Piper in memory of her husband. Mr. Piper, a senior executive with Motorola Inc. and Bausch & Lomb Inc., made important contributions for more than two decades in personnel and labor relations for these companies.

47th Annual Kenneth M. Piper Lecture

The 47th Annual Kenneth M. Piper lecture is free and open to the public, but registration is required.

Register Today!

Join us to hear Hiroshi Motomura, Professor of Law at UCLA, deliver this year's 47th Kenneth M. Piper Lecture. Professor Motomura's topic is "The Workplace and Belonging: Labor Law and Immigration Law in Tension."

Labor law and immigration law have a complex relationship with each other. Immigration law grants and denies lawful status, but it also creates many in-between statuses. Another key feature of immigration law is a big gap between law on the books and law in action. Millions of people in the United States lack lawful status, yet they work. Immigration law is a site of belonging in these different dimensions. Labor law has parallel characteristics. It confers rights and protections that vary by workplace context. And as with immigration law, a key feature of labor law is the gap between what should happen in theory and what happens in fact.

In these ways, labor law reflects some sense of belonging in the workplace. These parallel forms of belonging give rise to tensions. What happens when workers seek labor law remedies, but those workers lack lawful immigration status? What happens when workers have lawful status, but the practical terms of that status limits workplace protections that they have in theory? These examples show how belonging for noncitizen workers can differ when viewed through the lens of labor law or of immigration law. This Piper Lecture will explore the many interwoven dimensions of the workplace and belonging.

This lecture is free. It will be held in the Chicago-Kent College of Law Ogilvie Auditorium and will not be live-streamed. However, it will be available for on0demand viewing after the conference.

SPEAKER
    •    Hiroshi Motomura, Susan Westerberg Prager Distinguished Professor of Law, Faculty Co-Director, Center for Immigration Law and Policy, University of California, Los Angeles

COMMENTATORS
    •    Nicole Hallett, Professor, Clinical Professor of Law, Director of the Immigrants’ Rights Clinic, University of Chicago Law School
    •    César F. Rosado Marzán, Edward L. Carmody Professor of Law, Faculty Liaison, Iowa Labor Education Center Director, Graduate Programs and Visiting Scholars Associate Faculty, Department of Sociology and Criminology, University of Iowa College of Law
    •    Jessica Rutter, Manager, AFL-CIO Labor & Immigration Policy Lab
    •    Jonathan Grode, U.S. Practice Director, Green and Spiegel LLC

This lecture is funded by the Kenneth M. Piper Endowment, established by a gift from Mrs. Kenneth M. Piper in memory of her husband. Mr. Piper was a distinguished executive with Motorola, Inc., and Bausch & Lomb, Inc., who made important contributions in human resources and labor relations for more than two decades.

Past Piper Lecturers Have Included

• Professor Charlotte Garden of University of Minnesota School of Law (2023)
• Professor Cynthia Estlund of New York University School of Law (2022)
• Professor Scott Cummings of UCLA School of Law (2021)
• Professor Ruth Milkman of The Graduate Center City University of New York (2019)
• Professor Alexander J.S. Colvin of Cornell University (2018)
• Professor Robert Sprague of the University of Wyoming (2017)
• Lance Compa of the School of Industrial and Labor Relations, Cornell University (2016)
• Professor Noah D. Katz of UCLA School of Law [video] (2015)
• Jared Bernstein of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities [video] (2014)
• Professor Amy B. Monahan of the University of Minnesota Law School (2013)
• Dean Katherine S. Newman of the Zanvyl Krieger School of Arts and Sciences at Johns Hopkins University (2012)
• Professor Pauline T. Kim of Washington University School of Law (2011)
• Professor Joan C. Williams of the University of California, Hastings College of the Law (2010)
• Professor Richard B. Freeman of Harvard University (2009)
• Professor Cynthia Estlund of New York University School of Law (2008)
• Professor Thomas C. Kohler of Boston College Law School (2007)
• Professor Kenneth G. Dau-Schmidt of Indiana University School of Law-Bloomington (2006)
• Sara E. Rix of the Public Policy Institute of AARP (2005)
• Professor Catherine L. Fisk of the University of Southern California Law School (2004)
• Professor Maria O’Brien Hylton of Boston University School of Law (2003)
• Professor Marion G. Crain of the University of North Carolina (2002)
• Professor Howard F. Chang of the University of Pennsylvania Law School (2001)