Chaumtoli Huq
We are at a cross roads in the labor movement—membership in unions is declining, but unions and collective worker power are needed more than ever to address record income inequality and unfair, arbitrary treatment of employees on the job. We further recognize that a diverse and inclusive labor movement is essential to connecting with and representing employees in the future, where people of color, women and immigrants are the majority. The legal profession itself is the least diverse profession, and this is reflected among labor lawyers. We need to change this.
Ochoa│King is a full-service labor and employment law firm in San Diego dedicated to defending, advancing and supporting the rights of workers and their unions. We believe that private for-profit law firms, such as ours, play a key role in supporting first generation law students, immigrants, veterans, economically-disadvantaged, disabled, undocumented, LGBT and other law students committed to workers’ rights. As such, Ochoa│King takes great pride in leading the charge of giving law students the means to defray some of the costs associated with obtaining a law school education. This type of charitable giving, which is central to our mission, makes a real difference in addressing inequities in the legal profession while promoting greater diversity and inclusion in the labor movement. Indeed, other law firms could easily replicate such a program with relatively minimal resources and effort, thereby expanding its impact and reach in the community, and setting the framework for a shared sense of responsibility in mentoring the next generation of labor activists.
As one of its founding law partners, I was involved in establishing the law firm’s inaugural Workers’ Rights Scholarship for California law students committed to workplace justice. The $500 award is intended to further the goals of (1) increasing the number of people committed to using their law degrees to advance the cause of workers and the labor movement, (2) increasing diversity in the workers’ rights legal community, including attorneys at private law firms, and (3) giving a leg up to law students facing personal financial hardships and barriers when choosing careers in social and economic justice.
Since the Worker’ Rights Scholarship was first established, a number of awards have already been made to a diverse group of law students in California. As a testament to their dedication, several have since chosen career paths in the labor movement or public interest law post-law school graduation. Their profiles are available at: http://www.union-attorneys.org/scholarship-recipients.
For California law students interested in applying for the Ochoa│King Workers’ Rights Scholarship, students are directed to the firm’s website. http://www.union-attorneys.org
Candidates must submit the following materials by email to info@union-attorneys.org no later than September 30, 2015
Dovie Yoana King is a founding law partner at Ochoa│King, a boutique union-side labor and employment law firm dedicated to advancing, supporting and defending the rights of labor unions and their members.
