Instructor Manual: Cihon, Employment and Labor Law 11e, 11e, ©2027, 9798214055909; Chapter 1: First the Forest, Then the Trees: An
Overview of Employment and Labor Law
Instructor Manual
Cihon, Employment and Labor Law 11e, 11e, ©2027, 9798214055909;
Chapter 1: First the Forest, Then the Trees: An Overview of Employment and Labor Law
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Purpose and Perspective of the Chapter......................................................................2
Chapter Objectives........................................................................................................2
What's New in This Chapter........................................................................................2
Chapter Outline.............................................................................................................3
© 2027 Cengage Learning, Inc. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a 1
publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
, Instructor Manual: Cihon, Employment and Labor Law 11e, 11e, ©2027, 9798214055909; Chapter 1: First the Forest, Then the Trees: An
Overview of Employment and Labor Law
PURPOSE AND PERSPECTIVE OF THE CHAPTER
The purpose of this chapter is to provide learners with a comprehensive historical foundation of
employment and labor law, tracing its evolution from medieval guild systems through contemporary
workplace regulations. This chapter examines the transformation from collective bargaining dominance to
individual employee rights, analyzing such key legislative milestones as New Deal reforms, civil rights
protections, and modern arbitration frameworks. Students will explore the decline of organized labor due
to globalization, political shifts, and changing economic structures. The chapter addresses current tensions
between mandatory arbitration agreements and statutory employee protections, particularly following
recent legislation affecting sexual harassment claims. Additionally, learners will evaluate the
comprehensive network of federal and state laws governing workplace safety, benefits, and employee
welfare, while identifying remaining gaps in American employment protection systems and considering
ethical implications of executive policymaking in labor relations.
CHAPTER OBJECTIVES
The following objectives are addressed in this chapter:
01.01 Articulate the origins of labor and employment law in the long history of Anglo–Saxon
law.
01.02 Explain how the New Deal marked a turning point in American labor law.
01.03 Identify the forces and factors that precipitated the gradual decline of organized labor in the
United States.
01.04 Trace the rise and partial decline of employment arbitration as a central feature of collective
and individual employment dispute resolution down the decades.
01.05 Knowledgeably critique the rise of individual over collective employment rights in the
American legal system.
[return to top]
WHAT'S NEW IN THIS CHAPTER
The following elements are improvements in this chapter from the previous edition:
Updated framing to address Trump’s second term (2025– ), including disruption of federal
labor institutions.
Expanded treatment of arbitration’s rise and partial retreat, with:
o New in-depth coverage of the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault
and Sexual Harassment Act (2021).
o New state and federal cases interpreting the Act (e.g., whole-case carve-outs from
arbitration).
Updated union-decline statistics through 2024–2025, including Gen-Z organizing trends.
Revised Ethical Dilemma to extend beyond Obama/Trump I to include Biden and Trump II
executive-order “seesaw.”
[return to top]
© 2027 Cengage Learning, Inc. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a 2
publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
, Instructor Manual: Cihon, Employment and Labor Law 11e, 11e, ©2027, 9798214055909; Chapter 1: First the Forest, Then the Trees: An
Overview of Employment and Labor Law
CHAPTER OUTLINE
The following outline organizes activities (including any existing discussion questions in PowerPoints or
other supplements) and assessments by chapter (and therefore by topic), so that you can see how all the
content relates to the topics covered in the text.
I. Introduction (01.01 Articulate the origins of labor and employment law in the long history of
Anglo–Saxon law; PPT Slide Number 3.)
A. Key Concept: Medieval guilds evolved from unified craft organizations into hierarchical
corporations where workers lost their voice, leading to class divisions and labor revolts
that established early patterns of worker–employer conflict.
1. Discussion Question: How do the medieval guild system’s transformation and
the resulting class conflicts mirror modern workplace power dynamics and
labor disputes?
a. Sample Response: Like medieval guilds, modern corporations often
concentrate decision-making power among executives while workers
have limited voice in workplace governance. This parallel suggests that
fundamental tensions between capital and labor have persisted across
centuries, manifesting in contemporary union organizing and workplace
democracy movements.
2. Teaching Tips/Strategies: Address potential student misconceptions that labor
conflicts are a modern phenomenon by drawing clear historical parallels. Use
visual timelines to help students connect medieval guild structures to modern
corporate hierarchies and encourage discussion of how power imbalances
persist across different economic systems.
B. Key Concept: The employment-at-will doctrine emerged during the Industrial
Revolution, theoretically allowing either party to terminate employment freely, but in
practice giving employers overwhelming bargaining power over workers.
1. Discussion Question: In what ways does the historical development of
employment-at-will reflect broader societal attitudes toward individual
freedom versus collective worker protection?
a. Sample Response: Employment-at-will embodied 19th-century ideals of
individual liberty and free market capitalism, but it ignored the reality of
unequal bargaining power. This tension between theoretical freedom and
practical inequality continues to shape modern debates about worker
rights, union organizing, and employment protections.
2. Teaching Tips/Strategies: Help students understand that legal doctrines reflect
societal values by comparing employment-at-will to other “freedom of
contract” concepts. Encourage critical analysis of how legal theories can mask
power imbalances and facilitate discussions about whether true freedom
requires equal bargaining power.
C. Key Concept: Early American courts criminalized labor unions as conspiracies, reflecting
judicial bias toward property rights and employer interests until the 1842 Commonwealth
v. Hunt decision began legitimizing collective worker action.
1. Discussion Question: What does the judicial treatment of early labor unions
reveal about the relationship between law, economic power, and social change
in American society?
© 2027 Cengage Learning, Inc. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a 3
publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
, Instructor Manual: Cihon, Employment and Labor Law 11e, 11e, ©2027, 9798214055909; Chapter 1: First the Forest, Then the Trees: An
Overview of Employment and Labor Law
a. Sample Response: The criminalization of unions demonstrates how legal
systems can reinforce existing power structures, as judges from the
propertied class naturally protected employer interests. The gradual legal
acceptance of unions shows how persistent social movements can
eventually reshape legal doctrine to reflect changing societal values.
2. Teaching Tips/Strategies: Address the sensitive topic of judicial bias by
emphasizing how judges’ backgrounds inevitably influence their perspectives.
Use the Commonwealth v. Hunt case as a turning point to discuss how legal
precedent evolves through social pressure and changing economic conditions.
II. The New Deal and the Rise of the Modern American Union (01.02 Explain how
the New Deal marked a turning point in American labor law; PPT Slide Numbers 4–7.)
A. Key Concept: The Great Depression and New Deal produced landmark federal
employment legislation including the Social Security Act, National Labor Relations Act,
and Fair Labor Standards Act that fundamentally transformed worker–employer
relationships.
1. Discussion Question: How did the economic crisis of the Great Depression
create the political conditions necessary for revolutionary changes in American
labor law?
a. Sample Response: The Depression’s massive unemployment and
economic suffering discredited laissez-faire capitalism and created public
demand for government intervention. This crisis provided political cover
for legislators to enact sweeping reforms that would have been
impossible during prosperous times, demonstrating how economic
catastrophes can accelerate social change.
2. Teaching Tips/Strategies: Help students understand the connection between
economic crisis and legal reform by comparing New Deal legislation to
responses to other major crises. Encourage discussion of whether similar
comprehensive reforms are possible today and what conditions might be
necessary for such changes.
B. Key Concept: The U.S. Supreme Court’s initial resistance to New Deal legislation and
subsequent reversal in West Coast Hotel v. Parrish (1937) demonstrated the tension
between constitutional interpretation and political pressure during times of social
transformation.
1. Discussion Question: What are the implications for democratic governance
when the Supreme Court’s constitutional interpretation appears to shift in
response to political pressure rather than legal principles?
a. Sample Response: The Court’s reversal suggests that constitutional
interpretation is inevitably influenced by political and social context,
raising questions about judicial independence versus democratic
responsiveness. While this flexibility allows the Constitution to adapt to
changing times, it may also undermine public confidence in the rule of
law and judicial neutrality.
2. Teaching Tips/Strategies: This topic can be politically sensitive, so emphasize
the institutional rather than partisan aspects of the Court’s role. Encourage
students to consider both the benefits and dangers of judicial flexibility and
facilitate discussion about how courts should balance legal precedent with
social change.
© 2027 Cengage Learning, Inc. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a 4
publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Overview of Employment and Labor Law
Instructor Manual
Cihon, Employment and Labor Law 11e, 11e, ©2027, 9798214055909;
Chapter 1: First the Forest, Then the Trees: An Overview of Employment and Labor Law
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Purpose and Perspective of the Chapter......................................................................2
Chapter Objectives........................................................................................................2
What's New in This Chapter........................................................................................2
Chapter Outline.............................................................................................................3
© 2027 Cengage Learning, Inc. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a 1
publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
, Instructor Manual: Cihon, Employment and Labor Law 11e, 11e, ©2027, 9798214055909; Chapter 1: First the Forest, Then the Trees: An
Overview of Employment and Labor Law
PURPOSE AND PERSPECTIVE OF THE CHAPTER
The purpose of this chapter is to provide learners with a comprehensive historical foundation of
employment and labor law, tracing its evolution from medieval guild systems through contemporary
workplace regulations. This chapter examines the transformation from collective bargaining dominance to
individual employee rights, analyzing such key legislative milestones as New Deal reforms, civil rights
protections, and modern arbitration frameworks. Students will explore the decline of organized labor due
to globalization, political shifts, and changing economic structures. The chapter addresses current tensions
between mandatory arbitration agreements and statutory employee protections, particularly following
recent legislation affecting sexual harassment claims. Additionally, learners will evaluate the
comprehensive network of federal and state laws governing workplace safety, benefits, and employee
welfare, while identifying remaining gaps in American employment protection systems and considering
ethical implications of executive policymaking in labor relations.
CHAPTER OBJECTIVES
The following objectives are addressed in this chapter:
01.01 Articulate the origins of labor and employment law in the long history of Anglo–Saxon
law.
01.02 Explain how the New Deal marked a turning point in American labor law.
01.03 Identify the forces and factors that precipitated the gradual decline of organized labor in the
United States.
01.04 Trace the rise and partial decline of employment arbitration as a central feature of collective
and individual employment dispute resolution down the decades.
01.05 Knowledgeably critique the rise of individual over collective employment rights in the
American legal system.
[return to top]
WHAT'S NEW IN THIS CHAPTER
The following elements are improvements in this chapter from the previous edition:
Updated framing to address Trump’s second term (2025– ), including disruption of federal
labor institutions.
Expanded treatment of arbitration’s rise and partial retreat, with:
o New in-depth coverage of the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault
and Sexual Harassment Act (2021).
o New state and federal cases interpreting the Act (e.g., whole-case carve-outs from
arbitration).
Updated union-decline statistics through 2024–2025, including Gen-Z organizing trends.
Revised Ethical Dilemma to extend beyond Obama/Trump I to include Biden and Trump II
executive-order “seesaw.”
[return to top]
© 2027 Cengage Learning, Inc. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a 2
publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
, Instructor Manual: Cihon, Employment and Labor Law 11e, 11e, ©2027, 9798214055909; Chapter 1: First the Forest, Then the Trees: An
Overview of Employment and Labor Law
CHAPTER OUTLINE
The following outline organizes activities (including any existing discussion questions in PowerPoints or
other supplements) and assessments by chapter (and therefore by topic), so that you can see how all the
content relates to the topics covered in the text.
I. Introduction (01.01 Articulate the origins of labor and employment law in the long history of
Anglo–Saxon law; PPT Slide Number 3.)
A. Key Concept: Medieval guilds evolved from unified craft organizations into hierarchical
corporations where workers lost their voice, leading to class divisions and labor revolts
that established early patterns of worker–employer conflict.
1. Discussion Question: How do the medieval guild system’s transformation and
the resulting class conflicts mirror modern workplace power dynamics and
labor disputes?
a. Sample Response: Like medieval guilds, modern corporations often
concentrate decision-making power among executives while workers
have limited voice in workplace governance. This parallel suggests that
fundamental tensions between capital and labor have persisted across
centuries, manifesting in contemporary union organizing and workplace
democracy movements.
2. Teaching Tips/Strategies: Address potential student misconceptions that labor
conflicts are a modern phenomenon by drawing clear historical parallels. Use
visual timelines to help students connect medieval guild structures to modern
corporate hierarchies and encourage discussion of how power imbalances
persist across different economic systems.
B. Key Concept: The employment-at-will doctrine emerged during the Industrial
Revolution, theoretically allowing either party to terminate employment freely, but in
practice giving employers overwhelming bargaining power over workers.
1. Discussion Question: In what ways does the historical development of
employment-at-will reflect broader societal attitudes toward individual
freedom versus collective worker protection?
a. Sample Response: Employment-at-will embodied 19th-century ideals of
individual liberty and free market capitalism, but it ignored the reality of
unequal bargaining power. This tension between theoretical freedom and
practical inequality continues to shape modern debates about worker
rights, union organizing, and employment protections.
2. Teaching Tips/Strategies: Help students understand that legal doctrines reflect
societal values by comparing employment-at-will to other “freedom of
contract” concepts. Encourage critical analysis of how legal theories can mask
power imbalances and facilitate discussions about whether true freedom
requires equal bargaining power.
C. Key Concept: Early American courts criminalized labor unions as conspiracies, reflecting
judicial bias toward property rights and employer interests until the 1842 Commonwealth
v. Hunt decision began legitimizing collective worker action.
1. Discussion Question: What does the judicial treatment of early labor unions
reveal about the relationship between law, economic power, and social change
in American society?
© 2027 Cengage Learning, Inc. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a 3
publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
, Instructor Manual: Cihon, Employment and Labor Law 11e, 11e, ©2027, 9798214055909; Chapter 1: First the Forest, Then the Trees: An
Overview of Employment and Labor Law
a. Sample Response: The criminalization of unions demonstrates how legal
systems can reinforce existing power structures, as judges from the
propertied class naturally protected employer interests. The gradual legal
acceptance of unions shows how persistent social movements can
eventually reshape legal doctrine to reflect changing societal values.
2. Teaching Tips/Strategies: Address the sensitive topic of judicial bias by
emphasizing how judges’ backgrounds inevitably influence their perspectives.
Use the Commonwealth v. Hunt case as a turning point to discuss how legal
precedent evolves through social pressure and changing economic conditions.
II. The New Deal and the Rise of the Modern American Union (01.02 Explain how
the New Deal marked a turning point in American labor law; PPT Slide Numbers 4–7.)
A. Key Concept: The Great Depression and New Deal produced landmark federal
employment legislation including the Social Security Act, National Labor Relations Act,
and Fair Labor Standards Act that fundamentally transformed worker–employer
relationships.
1. Discussion Question: How did the economic crisis of the Great Depression
create the political conditions necessary for revolutionary changes in American
labor law?
a. Sample Response: The Depression’s massive unemployment and
economic suffering discredited laissez-faire capitalism and created public
demand for government intervention. This crisis provided political cover
for legislators to enact sweeping reforms that would have been
impossible during prosperous times, demonstrating how economic
catastrophes can accelerate social change.
2. Teaching Tips/Strategies: Help students understand the connection between
economic crisis and legal reform by comparing New Deal legislation to
responses to other major crises. Encourage discussion of whether similar
comprehensive reforms are possible today and what conditions might be
necessary for such changes.
B. Key Concept: The U.S. Supreme Court’s initial resistance to New Deal legislation and
subsequent reversal in West Coast Hotel v. Parrish (1937) demonstrated the tension
between constitutional interpretation and political pressure during times of social
transformation.
1. Discussion Question: What are the implications for democratic governance
when the Supreme Court’s constitutional interpretation appears to shift in
response to political pressure rather than legal principles?
a. Sample Response: The Court’s reversal suggests that constitutional
interpretation is inevitably influenced by political and social context,
raising questions about judicial independence versus democratic
responsiveness. While this flexibility allows the Constitution to adapt to
changing times, it may also undermine public confidence in the rule of
law and judicial neutrality.
2. Teaching Tips/Strategies: This topic can be politically sensitive, so emphasize
the institutional rather than partisan aspects of the Court’s role. Encourage
students to consider both the benefits and dangers of judicial flexibility and
facilitate discussion about how courts should balance legal precedent with
social change.
© 2027 Cengage Learning, Inc. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a 4
publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
