FAIR is accepting applications for its 11th annual FAIR Fellowship. The Fellowship enables a new attorney to work full-time for two consecutive terms: One year at Legal Aid at Work and six months at a law practice affiliated with the California Employment Lawyers Association (CELA), an organization of more than 1200 workers’ rights advocates throughout California.

FAIR will fund a Fellow with salary and benefits during the first year the fellow is working at Legal Aid at Work. The applicant will then be matched with a CELA affiliated firm for the second six month term and be paid a salary and benefits by that entity.

The 2024-26 FAIR Fellowship application deadline has passed, but for reference the application is available here.

In August and September 2023, volunteer members of CELA's Diversity Outreach Committee and other CELA members will conduct interviews at participating law schools to interview law students interested in the Employee Justice Summer Clerkship. During the interviews, the interviewers provide personalized information regarding CELA members and member-firms who are seeking to hire qualified summer law clerks and have agreed to pay their summer clerks at least $8,000 for a total of 10 weeks over the summer 2024.* From the initial interviews, Diversity Outreach Committee members and designated CELA interviewers compile their comments and impressions of all the candidates for CELA members. Also included in each student profile are the student’s resume and transcript, a writing sample, and a short statement of interest from the candidate. After participating firms review the applications and selected summer law clerks, a subcommittee designated by FAIR, in coordination with the CELA Diversity Outreach Committee, selected Employee Justice Summer Clerks, who will receive up to $4,000 in fellowship funding for summer 2024 to supplement the salary they receive from the member-firm.

*A fellowship applicant does not have to go through the CELA OCI process to be eligible to apply for the fellowship. An application does not guarantee a fellowship award.

The John D. Weiss Employee Justice Summer Clerkship Award is given to the top law student chosen from the yearly Employee Justice Summer Clerkship program, who exemplifies the attributes that John D. Weiss demonstrated during his life: a person with a generous heart who gives without expecting recognition, although so deserving; a person who demonstrates a fierce passion for achieving justice for workers; and, a person with an inspiring ability to overcome adversity. The Weiss Fellow will also be recognized with an additional stipend from FAIR. The namesake of this honor, John D. Weiss, was instrumental in helping CELA leaders to establish FAIR and generously supported the organization until his untimely passing in 2013.