Former Labor Organizer Wins McCormack & Erlich Scholarship
Oct 19, 2018
San Francisco, CA (Law Firm Newswire) October 19, 2018 – Alexia Diorio wants to fight for workers’ rights as an attorney, just as she did during her prior career as a labor organizer. Thanks to the McCormack and Erlich Law Firm, she has another $1,000 to help complete her legal studies at UC Berkeley as the firm’s 2018 scholarship recipient.
“Alexia is an outstanding young legal talent with a proven record of fighting for workers’ rights in the United States,” said McCormack & Erlich’s Jason Erlich. “She is a very deserving recipient and a very bright hope for underprivileged workers.”
Diorio, 28, recently was a labor organizer for Seattle-based Working Washington and is enrolled in the UC Berkeley School of Law. She first became interested in employment law and workers’ rights while volunteering for the Employment Justice Center in Washington D.C. In that role, Diorio helped organize low-wage workers and improve their working conditions by helping them to address labor violations.
“I realized that wage theft, workplace discrimination, retaliation, and other injustices are rampant in most jobs,” Diorio said. “I felt frustrated witnessing and experiencing this, and decided to attend law school so that I could gain additional tools to fight for the rights of workers.”
Last summer, Diorio was a Peggy Brown Fellow at Legal Aid at Work in San Francisco, where she helped workers recover wages via the state’s wage-claim process through the California Labor Commissioner’s local office. Diorio wants to combine her experience as a labor organizer with her legal education to advocate for workers’ rights.
“Labor violations are, unfortunately, very prevalent, and I know how psychologically draining it can be to challenge those illegal working conditions without a strong support system,” Diorio said. “I hope to provide that support as an attorney.”
About McCormack & Erlich
McCormack & Erlich is a leading employment law firm in the San Francisco area, representing employees who are owed wages or who have suffered wrongful termination, discrimination, sexual harassment, and violations of family and medical leave protections. Wynne Law Firm is a premier employment law firm specializing in class action wage and hour litigation.
Media Contact: Bryan J. McCormack of McCormack & Erlich, 150 Post Street, Suite 742, San Francisco, CA 94108; telephone (415) 296-8420; email: bryan@mcelawfirm.com
McCormack & Erlich
150 Post Street
Suite 742
San Francisco, CA 94108
Phone: (415) 296-8420
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