Workplace Justice Project Attorney

Be a critical member in a team of dedicated social justice advocates! The Public Justice Center seeks an attorney to join its Workplace Justice Project team.

The Public Justice Center (“PJC”) and the Workplace Justice Project

The PJC pursues systemic change to build a just society. Founded in Maryland in 1985, the PJC uses legal advocacy tools to pursue social justice, economic and racial equity, and fundamental human rights for people who are struggling to provide for their basic needs. The PJC is a civil legal aid office that provides advice and representation to low-income clients, advocates before legislatures and government agencies, and collaborates with community and advocacy organizations. For more about PJC, visit our website: www.publicjustice.org.

The PJC’s Workplace Justice Project seeks to advance justice, equity, and worker power in the workplace. Project attorneys approach this mission through a broad array of strategies, including representing low-wage workers in wage-theft suits in state and federal courts; providing know-your-rights education to workers and community groups; and engaging in worker-focused policy advocacy before the Maryland General Assembly and state agencies, in partnership with other advocates and organizations. We also make space to take on additional work outside of these areas as needed. We work closely with unions, grassroots membership organizations, and other community groups and follow the lead of the individuals most impacted by injustice. We focus on industries where wage theft is common and where people of color comprise a disproportionate part of the workforce.

Attorneys in the Workplace Justice Project are encouraged to develop and pursue their own ideas in line with the PJC’s priorities and approaches to systemic change. The attorney will report to the lead attorney of the Workplace Justice team. We are seeking to fill this position as soon as possible.

Examples of the Workplace Justice Project’s successes include:

• Obtaining a Fourth Circuit decision establishing a new, employee-friendly standard for joint employment under the Fair Labor Standards Act, making it harder for employers to skirt their responsibilities to employees through layers of subcontracting.
• Helping draft and lead the successful advocacy campaign for the Healthy Working Families Act, Maryland’s sick and safe leave law.
• Obtaining partial summary judgment and a subsequent settlement of $412,099.08 for 13 paratransit drivers who had been misclassified as independent contractors and subjected to egregious wage theft.
• Prevailing after a week-long bench trial and recovering $93,450 on behalf of 11 construction workers who worked on a fitness facility for weeks to months with no pay at all.
• Passing Maryland’s Home Care Worker’s Rights Act, requiring home care agencies to correctly classify their home care workers as employees – rather than misclassify them as independent contractors – in order to receive Medicaid reimbursement for the care.

Core Duties:

• Engage in all aspects of litigation in state and federal courts, including developing new cases; conducting legal research and drafting legal memoranda; drafting pleadings and briefs; conducting oral argument; and participating in discovery, trials, and appeals
• Provide know-your-rights trainings and outreach to community groups and participants in workforce development programs
• Draft legislation and and engage in policy advocacy before the Maryland General Assembly and state agencies
• Develop and maintain close working relationships with community and coalition partners
• Develop and advance the goals of the PJC and the Workplace Justice Project, including contributing to the team’s workplan and race equity analysis

Desired Skills and Experience:

The following qualifications are valued for this position. Applicants should also identify other related or supplementary skills and experiences.

Required

• Maryland bar admission or admission to another state bar and willingness to secure admission in Maryland as soon as possible
• Prior experience working with low-income and other marginalized communities and clients
• At least 2-4 years of experience practicing as a lawyer
• Passion for social justice and commitment to the PJC’s vision
• Understanding of the principles of race equity analysis and the intersection of racism, poverty, and other lived experiences, as well as their application to the PJC’s organizational life and to our work
• Ability to work under deadline and manage multiple tasks
• Ability to empathize and sensitively respond to people in crisis situations
• Strong problem-solving, time management, and organizational skills
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively with others within and outside the PJC

Strongly Preferred

• At least three years of litigation experience
• Experience advocating for workers’ rights
• Lived experience with our client communities
• Spanish fluency

Compensation: This is a full-time, exempt, professional position. The attorney may be called upon to work hours more than 40 hours in a workweek, including the potential for evening and weekend work. Local travel will be required at times. Salary is determined by the PJC’s pay scale; the range for an attorney with 2 to 4 years of experience is $74,000 to $78,000 and increases with experience, plus a $1,000 Spanish language annual salary supplement if qualified. An excellent cafeteria benefit package in the annual amount of $16,200 is also provided. This package offers health, dental, disability and life insurance, and retirement options. Cafeteria benefits packages give employees flexibility to choose how to direct their benefits. For example, this package can cover 100% of employee healthcare premiums, but an employee can choose to direct those funds towards retirement if they already have health insurance, or can have remaining funds added to the employee’s taxable salary. PJC employees receive at least 20 days of paid leave, with increases based on length of tenure, 10 paid holidays, and 15 days of sick leave annually.

Applications: We will accept applications and conduct interviews on a rolling basis until the position is filled, but priority consideration will be given to applications received by February 15, 2025. Applications will be accepted by email only. To apply, please submit (1) a cover letter explaining your interest, (2) a resume, (3) two legal writing samples, and (4) the names, telephone numbers, and email addresses of three references. Please send application materials to Lee Woo Kee, wookeel@publicjustice.org, with “Workplace Justice Attorney applicant” in the subject line. Applications will be acknowledged, and applicants will be contacted if selected for an interview.

Hybrid Work: Most PJC positions, including this one, generally have the option of working in our office in downtown Baltimore City or at home. The attorney will be required to work in the office, the courts, or other meetings as necessary.

Physical/Mental Demands and Office Environment: The physical/mental demands described in this job announcement are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations can be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Equal Employment Opportunity: The Public Justice Center is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer that encourages all interested persons to apply regardless of race, color, national origin, ancestry, ethnicity, citizenship, creed, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, transgender status, age, religion, genetic information, physical or mental disability, marital status, or any other legally protected status. We strongly encourage Black, Latine, Indigenous, and other applicants of color, people with disabilities, and other people historically underrepresented in the practice of law to apply.