2009 National Policy Forum

Program Chair: Joel Cutcher-Gershenfeld
Co-chairs:  Thomas Kochan, MIT; Bonnie Summers, Blue Cross Blue Shield Association; Richard Trumka, AFL-CIO

LERA National Policy Forums are designed to connect theory and practice with policy issues in ways that have impact.  Hosted by George Washington University at the Cafritz Conference Center in Washington D.C. the 2009 Forum theme signals what may be an end to over two decades of gridlock on a broad range of labor and employment policy issues and explores what may be new frontiers in labor and employment policy. 

This year's Policy Forum will have a particular focus on policy issues around union organizing, pension and health care benefits, and other issues for which legislative debates are anticipated and where public policy can be informed by scholarly research and practitioner perspectives.   The Forum will also consider state and industry-level challenges in rebuilding the American Dream and surface deeper underlying assumptions about the workforce, unions, employers and other stakeholders. 

Keynote Addresses by National Leaders:
Hon. Hilda Solis, Secretary, US Department of Labor
Bob DuPuy, President and COO of Major League Baseball
Richard Trumka, Secretary-Treasurer, AFL-CIO
Lisa Lynch, Dean, Heller School of Social Policy and Management, Brandeis University

Through a series of workshops and plenary sessions featuring panels of legislators, labor and management practitioners, and leading researchers, the LERA 2009 NPF will provide a unique opportunity to participate in the public policy dialogue concerning today’s most pressing problems.

Blue Ribbon Panels Featured Leading Experts on:
Health Care and Pensions
The Role of Government in the Auto Industry
Training and Skill Development
Federal Sector Labor Relations
Union Organizing and Collective Bargaining
Infrastructure Investments and Green Jobs
Executive Compensation

This conference is for: employment relations practitioners, company executives, union officials, Capitol Hill staffers, attorneys, government employees, mediators and arbitrators, journalists, researchers, academics, and others involved with labor and employment relations practices, law, and policy.

Early-bird registration runs through May 25th. Discounted hotel room rates have been arranged at the Washington Hilton and are available through May 25, 2009. To register for the conference, reserve a hotel room, or view the current program, see links at left.