Whether it is exposing legislation and regulations that benefit unions, lawyers or management at the expense of workers, detailing the folly of occupational licensing laws; supporting the expansion of state right-to-work laws; or highlighting the overreach of lawmakers, bureaucrats, and courts; CEI advances reforms in this crucial, often overlooked policy area. Our op-eds, policy papers, media appearances, coalition work, and innovative research serve as crucial counterweights to the aggressive efforts by unions and their allies to frame the policy debate.
Labor and Employment Issue Areas
Featured Posts
The Daily Signal
How Many Biden Appointees ‘Burrowed in’ to the Permanent Bureaucracy?
The Daily Signal cited CEI’s expert on political career placements Sean Higgins, a research fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, also highlighted the threat of…
News Release
April adds 177,000 jobs to economy, tariff policies yet to majorly shakeup labor market: CEI analysis
The job numbers for April show 177,000 jobs were added to the economy, with the unemployment rate staying steady at 4.2 percent. While job growth…
Blog
CEI suggests DOT put the brakes on train two-person crew rule
The Transportation Department recently asked the public for comments on how to reduce the regulatory burden. One thought that the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI)…
Search Posts
Blog
Debating Employment Flexibility in the Gig Economy
Renowned labor expert and Harvard professor Benjamin Sachs argues over at OnLabor.org that he's had enough with what he calls the “flexibility trope” of worker classification…
Blog
Federal Employees Spend Over 3 Million Hours on Union Business
Federal employee unions enjoy a government subsidy known as “official time” that enables union members to perform union duties while being paid by the taxpayer.
HR Dive
NLRB Considers Rulemaking To Settle Joint-Employer Uncertainty
HR Dive cited Trey Kovacs on the benefits of NLRB’s announcement of a new joint employer rulemaking. In an email to HR Dive,…
Blog
Due Process Concerns Remain in National Labor Relations Board Ethics Inquiry
On March 28, 2018, the Competitive Enterprise Institute sent a letter to the National Labor Relations Board Office of Inspector General to investigate NLRB…
InsideSources
Fed Labor Board Looks to Undo Obama-Era Rule
InsideSources cited Trey Kovacs on the importance how the National Labor Relations Board new joint employer rulemaking will benefit businesses and workers by aiding to…
News Release
NLRB Announces New Joint Employer Rulemaking – a Good Move, Says CEI’s Trey Kovacs
Today the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) announced it is considering a new rulemaking to fix the controversial joint employer standard.
Letters
CEI Joins Coalition Letter to Support H.R. 3825, the Harmonization of Coverage Act of 2017
On behalf of the Coalition to Promote Independent Entrepreneurs, a national coalition of trade associations, companies, and independent entrepreneurs that support an individual’s right to…
Washington Examiner
Education Department Employees Can’t Do Union Work on the Taxpayers’ Dime Anymore
A simmering feud between the Department of Education and the union representing the agency’s employees erupted into a bigger squabble over a wasteful taxpayer subsidy…
Blog
Department of Labor Safeguards Worker Retirement Investments
It is well known that Americans do not adequately save for retirement. As such, it is crucial that every dollar American workers put away…
Blog
House Committee Examines How to Modernize Labor Laws
Labor-management relation laws in the United States are in need of an update. Reform is long overdue, with the last major update to statutes governing…
Blog
If Trump Is Serious about Jobs, Embrace AI and Loosen Labor Laws
There is a lot of panic about the implications of artificial intelligence technologies for the future of work. Some scholars, such as Nobel laureate Joseph…
News Release
Senate Confirms Much-Needed Trump Labor Appointees
The Senate is set to confirm two long-awaited appointees for key labor positions. Competitive Enterprise Institute labor policy analyst Trey Kovacs says the labor experts…
Blog
National Labor Relations Board General Counsel Rebukes Board
It seems there is never a slow day over at the National Labor Relations Board. Today, the NLRB General Counsel Peter Robb issued a legal…
Blog
Option for States Dealing with Illegal Teacher Union Strikes
An uptick in teacher union strikes has occurred over past few months. Teachers have abandoned students in West Virginia, Kentucky, and Oklahoma with rumblings of…
The Washington Post
Why do Maryland Labor Unions Want Workers’ Private Data?
Maryland public-sector unions are lobbying the state legislature to undermine a Supreme Court case that could end their power to make workers pay union fees…
News Release
Media Reports Labor Board Will Investigate Leak After CEI Request
The Competitive Enterprise Institute asked the Inspector General of the National Labor Relations Board to investigate board member Mark Pearce for leaking confidential information. Two…
Blog
Investigate Labor Relations Board Confidentiality Breach
Earlier this week, the Competitive Enterprise Institute sent a request to the National Labor Relations Board Office of Inspector General to investigate NLRB member…
Bloomberg BNA
Labor Board Watchdog Asked to Probe Democratic Member
Bloomberg BNA highlights our request to the NLRB to investigate leaks. The Competitive Enterprise Institute this morning asked NLRB Inspector General David Berry…
Washington Examiner
Conservative group calls for probe of NLRB member
The Washington Examiner profiles our letter to the NLRB asking for an investigation into leaked information: The Competitive Enterprise Institute said in…
News Release
NLRB Leaks Spur CEI Call for Investigation
The Competitive Enterprise Institute today sent a letter to the National Labor Relations Board inspector general asking him to investigate allegations that board member…
Comment
Letter to the NLRB Office of Inspector General on Mark Gaston Pearce
View Full Document as PDF Dear Inspector General Berry: The Competitive Enterprise Institute respectfully requests the National Labor Relations Board Office of…
The Free Beacon
Coalition Urges Franchise Fix in Omnibus Bill
The Free Beacon talks to Trey Kovacs about CEI’s coalition letter urging for protections for franchises: A coalition of taxpayer and business…
Blog
Include ‘Joint Employer’ Fix in Omnibus Budget Bill
The Competitive Enterprise Institute is leading a free-market coalition urging Congress to attach the Save Local Business Act (H.R. 4331) as a policy rider to the…
Blog
Department of Education Limits Federal Employee Union Subsidy
Department of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos deserves a round of applause. Most federal agencies, even in Republican administrations, agree to collective bargaining agreements that heavily…
Blog
National Labor Relations Board Recusal Saga Continues
Democrats and union allies have been transparent in their goal to block or delay any decisions by the Trump National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), as…
Letters
CEI Leads Coalition Urging House Leadership to Include the Save Local Business Act (H.R. 3441) in the 2018 Spending Bill
View Full Document as PDF Dear Senators and Representatives, The undersigned organizations urge House leadership to include the House-passed Save Local Business…
Blog
Growing Scandal at National Labor Relations Board
This has the look of a coordinated attack to hinder the current National Labor Relations Board’s ability to reform Obama-era policies. The Inspector General stirred…
Watchdog
More Briefs Filed with SCOTUS in Forced Union Dues Case
Watchdog cited Trey Kovacs on the longstanding circumstance of union workers being forced to pay for controversial political activities for unions by the government. …
U.S. News and World Report
Don’t Fear Worker Freedom
PUBLIC SECTOR UNIONS have some dire warnings about a U.S. Supreme Court case that could end forced union dues for government employees, like teachers, police officers…
Watchdog.org
Labor policy analyst: Unions using overblown rhetoric to defend forced union fees for government workers
Watchdog.org cites Trey Kovacs’ on the upcoming Supreme Court decision in the Janus v. AFSCME forced union dues case: Competitive Enterprise Institute’s…
Blog
Job-Killing Joint Employer Standard Returns
In an abrupt and unexpected move, on February 26th, the National Labor Relations Board vacated its December 2017 decision in Hy-Brand, which restored longstanding Board…
Blog
Could Janus Ruling Open the Door to Pension Reform?
This week, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument in case Janus v. AFSCME, which could significantly impact unions representing government employees. A ruling in…
The Hill
Labor board vacates key ruling over conflict of Trump appointee
The Hill quotes Trey Kovacs on the need for a congressional fix to the joint-employer standard. The Competitive Enterprise Institute, a conservative…
Reuters
U.S. labor agency overturns major ruling, citing Trump appointee’s conflict
Thompson-Reuters quotes Trey Kovacs on the NLRB decision to return to the Browning-Ferris joint employer standard. Trey Kovacs, a labor policy expert…
Daily Signal
Mandatory Union Fees Divide Demonstrators as Supreme Court Hears Arguments
The Daily Signal talks to Trey Kovacs about Janus v. AFSCME, the forced union dues case before the Supreme Court. Trey Kovacs, a…
The Boston Globe
Should workers have to pay union dues? Supreme Court will hear case today
The Boston Globe gives a roundup of argument in the Janus v. AFSCME forced union dues case before the Supreme Court. Opponents…
News Release
NLRB Upends Joint Employer Labor Standard (Again!): CEI Statement
Abruptly, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) today vacated its most recent ruling on joint employer liability, the standard that determines when two employers are considered…
Inside Sources
After the Supreme Court Rules On Forced Union Dues
Inside Sources talks to Trey Kovacs about the Janus v. AFSCME forced union dues case before the Supreme Court: The Competitive Enterprise…
Blog
Landmark Supreme Court Case Can Restore Worker Freedom
Today at oral argument in Janus v. AFSCME, Council 31, Justice Sonia Sotomayor said “You're basically arguing, do away with unions,” when questioning Bill…
News Release
CEI Hopeful Supreme Court Will Strike a Victory for Worker Freedom and First Amendment in Janus Case
“No worker who wants to serve the public should be forced to pay union fees against their will at the risk of losing his or…
Blog
The Dues and Don’ts of Government Union Life
No worker should be forced to financially support a union to speak and bargain on their behalf with the government. Check out CEI's video on the…
Blog
Lawson v. Grubhub a Big Win for Flexible Work Arrangements
Classyfying sharing economy workers as employees, rather than independent contractors, would undercut why many individuals find sharing economy work appealing. Sharing economy workers can choose how much and…
Fox News
Dear Supreme Court, It’s Time to Let Union Workers Decide How to Spend Their Money
Mark Janus is a child-support specialist in Illinois who is forced to pay union dues in order to keep his job. As a public employee,…
The Hill
Congress Must Stop Union Scheme Siphoning Funds From Medicaid
Congress created Medicaid to exclusively fund care to the elderly and disabled, not fund labor unions. But powerful labor unions like the Service Employee International…
Reflections On The Evolution Of Trade Policy
Reflections On The Evolution Of Trade Policy
Forbes has published an article by Fred Smith detailing the effects of renegotiation and its effects on the North American economy as well as the…
Blog
In Illinois, Public Pension Funding Cannot Keep up with Pension Benefits’ Growth
Public pension shortfalls result from too little money being paid into the pension funds. Or so government employee unions and their political allies would have…
Letters
CEI Joins Coalition Letter Opposing Taxpayer-Funded Pension Bailouts
View Full Document as PDF Dear Members of Congress: On behalf of our organizations and the millions of American taxpayers we represent,…
Inside Sources
Free-Market Coalition Urges Action on Franchise Rule
Inside Sources cites the leadership role which CEI is playing in defining joint-employment as head of a coaltion of free-market advocacy groups. A coalition…
The Washington Post
Gorsuch could deal government unions a mortal blow
The Washington Post cited the Competitive Enterprise Institute on the AFSCME’s use of compulsory agency fees to fund political advocacy on a slew of partisan…
Chicago Tribune
Commentary: Gorsuch could strike a mortal blow to unions
The Chicago Tribune has cited the Competitive Enterprise Institute for its role in bringing to light the breadth of influence the American Federation of State, County and…
