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Sara Blackwell

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sara Blackwell
EducationMcNeese State University (BS)
Louisiana State University (JD)
OccupationEmployment rights attorney
Years active2002 - present
Websitetheblackwellfirm.com

Sara Blackwell is an American attorney and is the founder of Protect US Workers, a non-profit organization.[1] Blackwell gained national media attention when she represented hundreds of United States citizens and permanent residents who were replaced by recipients of H-1B temporary work visas.[2] In 2018, she represented New Orleans Saints cheerleader, Bailey Davis, who was fired for an Instagram post and allegedly attending a party where NFL players were present.[3]

Background

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Blackwell earned a B.S. in criminal justice from McNeese State University (1999) and her J.D. from Louisiana State University, Paul M. Hebert Law Center (2002). She currently (April 2018) teaches employment law at the University of South Florida.[4] Her public sector experience includes working for a judge as a federal court law clerk and she served as an attorney for the Western District of Louisiana. In the private sector, she has worked for several firms as an employment attorney.[1] She is currently the president of The Blackwell Firm.[5]

High profile cases

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H-1B visa foreign worker replacement

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In 2016, Blackwell represented former IT workers from the Walt Disney Company in Perrero v. HCL America, Inc. et al.[6][7] The case was dismissed by Judge Gregory A. Presnell, who noted a gap in U.S. worker protections.[8] A 1998 rule exempts some H-1B visa holders from job protection laws if they earn at least $60,000 or have a master’s degree. This applies to companies where at least 15% of employees hold H-1B or L-1 visas. According to The Atlantic, such companies can replace U.S. workers with temporary foreign workers.[9]

Blackwell continued working on similar cases, including layoffs at the University of California, Davis (49 workers), Southern California Edison (400 workers), Carnival Cruise Line (200 workers),[10][11] and Eversource Energy (220 workers), where the replacement training was called “knowledge transfer.”[12]

She appeared on 60 Minutes[12] and spoke at Donald Trump’s campaign events, later expressing frustration with the administration’s lack of action on visa reform in 2017.[13]

NFL cheerleaders differential treatment

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In March 2018, the New York Times printed the story of a former New Orleans Saints cheerleader's filing with the EEOC concerning the team's employment policies. The New York Times learned from Bailey Davis' interviews, emails and an eight-page handbook that unlike the rule for NFL players, the team has an anti-fraternization policy where cheerleaders must leave public accommodations if a player enters the room, may not speak to and must block NFL players on social media, may not be photographed in uniform and may not appear nude or in revealing attire.[3] Davis was fired for appearing on her private Instagram in a one piece bathing suit.[14]

Blackwell coordinated a series of television interviews that received widespread attention in the United States and some international media.[15][16][17][18][19][20] In April, Kristan Ann Ware, a former Miami Dolphins cheerleader, joined Davis as a co-plaintiff in a legal case involving religious discrimination. The team acknowledged the incident and stated that the supervisor involved had been reprimanded but remained employed by the organization.[21][22]

As of April 29, 2018, the plaintiffs are seeking arbitration with the NFL and one dollar in compensation.[23][24] Prior to the Bailey Davis E.E.O.C. filing, Time magazine reported that NFL cheerleaders are paid about $10.00 per hour, and these salaries are often capped. An earlier lawsuit claimed with additional commitments and expenses, a San Francisco 49ers cheerleader earned about $2.75 per hour.[25]

Publications

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Blackwell has contributed to the Jambalaya News, the Times Southwest and the City Social of Baton Rouge.[26]

Books

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  • Destiny Of One, Sara Blackwell, The Peppertree Press, December 3, 2014, ISBN 978-1614933106[27]
  • Venergy, Sara Blackwell and Emily Gerety, Pants On Fire Press, Mar 16, 2017, ISBN 978-0982727140[28]

References

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  1. ^ a b Mulvaney, Erin (2018-04-24). "Meet the Florida Lawyer Who's Calling Foul on Workplace Rules for NFL Cheerleaders - National Law Journal". National Law Journal. Archived from the original on 2018-04-29. Retrieved 2018-04-29.
  2. ^ Whitaker, Bill (2017-08-13). "Are U.S. jobs vulnerable to workers with H-1B visas?". CBS News. Archived from the original on 2018-04-29. Retrieved 2018-04-29.
  3. ^ a b "How an Instagram Post Led to an N.F.L. Cheerleader's Discrimination Case". The New York Times. 2018-03-25. Archived from the original on 2018-04-25. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
  4. ^ "About". The Blackwell Firm. Archived from the original on 2018-04-30. Retrieved 2018-04-29.
  5. ^ "NFL Cheerleader Wants $1, Meeting With Goodell to Settle Claims". Legal, Tax, EHS, and HR Expert Information & Analysis. 2018-04-25. Archived from the original on 2018-05-02. Retrieved 2018-05-02.
  6. ^ Wakabayashi, Daisuke; Schwartz, Nelson D. (2017-01-29). "Not Everyone in Tech Cheers Visa Program for Foreign Workers". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2017-02-12. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
  7. ^ "Perrero v. HCL America, Inc. et al, No. 6:2016cv00112 - Document 50 (M.D. Fla. 2016)". Justia Law. 2018-04-20. Archived from the original on 2018-04-29. Retrieved 2018-04-29.
  8. ^ Preston, Julia (2016-01-25). "Judge Says Disney Didn't Violate Visa Laws in Layoffs". The New York Times. Retrieved 2016-10-14.
  9. ^ Campbell, Alexia Fernández (2016-12-06). "There's a Clear Way to Fix the H-1B Visa Program". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on 2018-04-29. Retrieved 2018-04-29.
  10. ^ Hiltzik, Michael (2017-01-07). "How the University of California exploited a visa loophole to move tech jobs to India". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 2018-04-29. Retrieved 2018-04-29. UC San Francisco, the system's biggest medical center, announced in July that it would lay off 49 career IT staffers and eliminate 48 other IT jobs that were vacant or filled by contract employees. The workers are to be gone as of Feb. 28. In the meantime they've been ordered to train their own replacements, who are employees of the Indian outsourcing firm HCL Technologies.
  11. ^ Thibodeau, Patrick (2016-12-23). "Facing layoff at Carnival, IT employee makes bold counteroffer". Computerworld. Archived from the original on 2018-04-29. Retrieved 2018-04-29.
  12. ^ a b ""60 Minutes" examines H-1B visas outsourcing American jobs". CBS News. 2017-03-17. Retrieved 2018-04-29.
  13. ^ Anderson, Zac (2017-03-25). "Sarasota attorney Sara Blackwell says President Trump "betrayed" visa critics". Sarasota Herald. Archived from the original on 2018-04-29. Retrieved 2018-04-29.
  14. ^ "An NFL Cheerleader Brings Her Firing Over An Instagram Photo To The EEOC". NPR.org. 2018-04-15. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
  15. ^ "#BIGPICTURE: Saints cheerleader fired for posting instagram photo". NBC News. 2018-03-28. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
  16. ^ "New Orleans Saints Cheerleader Bailey Davis Claims She Was Fired for Posing in Racy Bodysuit". Inside Edition. 2018-03-26. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
  17. ^ "Ex-NFL Cheerleader Claims She Was Fired Over Instagram Photo, Calls Out Different Rules for Players". PEOPLE.com. 2018-03-27. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
  18. ^ "Fired New Orleans Saints cheerleader files discrimination complaint". USA TODAY. 2018-03-26. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
  19. ^ Brady, Marianna (2018-03-29). "NFL cheerleader 'fired for Instagram post'". BBC News. Archived from the original on 2018-04-28. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
  20. ^ "Accusations of double standards faced by NFL cheerleaders". ABC Radio Australia. 2018-04-19. Archived from the original on 2018-04-30. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
  21. ^ "Ex-Dolphins cheerleader claims she faced discrimination after admitting being a virgin". NBC News. 2018-04-29. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
  22. ^ "Dolphins cheerleader says she faced discrimination after revealing her virginity". Washington Post. 2018-04-12. Archived from the original on April 13, 2018. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
  23. ^ "Former N.F.L. Cheerleaders Offer to Settle for $1 and a Meeting With Goodell". The New York Times. 2018-04-24. Archived from the original on 2018-04-27. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
  24. ^ "Ex-cheerleaders offer to settle claims against NFL for $1 each and meeting with Roger Goodell". Washington Post. 2018-04-25. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
  25. ^ Tuttle, Brad (2018-02-01). "6 Things You Didn't Know About the Careers of NFL Cheerleaders". Money. Archived from the original on 2018-04-30. Retrieved 2018-04-30.
  26. ^ "Dream. Rise. Lead". International Association of Women (IAW). Archived from the original on 2018-05-01. Retrieved 2018-05-01.
  27. ^ Blackwell, S. (2014). Destiny of One. Peppertree Press. ISBN 978-1-61493-310-6. Retrieved 2018-05-01.
  28. ^ Blackwell, S.; Gerety, E.; Powers, D.M.F. (2017). Venergy. Pants On Fire Press. ISBN 978-0-9827271-4-0. Retrieved 2018-05-02.
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