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
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: Liberty movement jobs with Claire Kittle Dixon
In this week’s episode we cover the war on prices, the great un-wokening of corporate America, the attack on credit card…
Blog
UAW loses 13,000 members
The United Auto Workers (UAW) lost 13,000 members in the last year, according to filings the union made to the Labor Department. The UAW said…
Blog
NLRB seeks to revoke First Amendment for management.
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) last week sent a warning that literally anything management says about a union organizing bid…
Search Posts
Trib Live
The secret ballot: Protect it
A new report on the United Auto Workers' attempt to organize Volkswagen's plant in Chattanooga, Tenn., makes clear the need to better protect workers' right…
Blog
The NLRB Shows Union Favoritism
Unions have always had special privileges in America, but ever since 1973, when United States v. Enmons exempted them from compliance with the Hobbs Act,…
Blog
Paycheck Protection and Union Dishonesty
Paycheck protection and right-to-work are under siege in Missouri’s continuing labor fight.
Blog
CEI Testifies against National Labor Relations Board Rule to Allow Ambush Elections
On three separate panels, I testified last week against the flaws inherent in the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) latest proposed rule. The NLRB…
News Release
CEI Report: Secret Ballot in Union Elections in Peril
WASHINGTON, April 16 – A new Competitive Enterprise Institute report by policy analyst Trey Kovacs documents efforts by the United Auto Workers (UAW) to…
Study
How the UAW Lost Tennessee
In 2011, after state tax incentives lured Volkswagen to Chattanooga, Tennessee, the UAW saw its best chance of making the goal of unionizing a foreign…
Blog
Unions Attack Right-to-Work
The battle over Right-to-Work is heating up in Missouri, as proponents and opponents pour on the rhetoric.
Blog
CEI’s WorkplaceChoice.org Scores Paycheck Fairness Act
The Competitive Enterprise Institute scored Wednesday’s vote in the U.S. Senate on the passage of S. 3772, The Paycheck Fairness Act, a bill that would…
Blog
EEOC Loses Hypocritical Lawsuit against Employer over Background Checks
"In this case the EEOC sued the defendants for using the same type of background check that the EEOC itself uses." So began a…
Blog
Threatening Free Speech, New Jersey Court Allows Parents to Be Sued for Children’s Facebook Posts
Earlier, we wrote about a Wisconsin town whose ordinance holds parents liable for bullying by their children, including certain speech. We and law professor…
Blog
Ryan FY 2015 Budget Calls for Transportation Funding Rationalization
House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wisc., released his FY 2015 budget today. In just three pages, he calls for surprisingly sensible reforms to…
Blog
CEI Podcast for March 27, 2014: Bait and Reciprocal Switch
CEI Fellow Marc Scribner talks about his new paper, “Bait and Reciprocal Switch: Forced Access Regulation Threatens the Rail Renaissance.”…
Blog
Human Achievement of the Day: Autonomous Vehicles, from Imagination to Reality
[caption id="attachment_55209" align="alignright" width="300"] CEI General Counsel Sam Kazman about to take a spin in a Google self-driving car in May 2012. (Photo by Marc…
Washington Times
More Overtime Rules Enrich Obama
The Washington Times‘ editorial board notes that the Obama administration is poised to introduce “new and murkier definitions of overtime eligibility” that will “stifle job…
Blog
Ohio Constitution Prohibits Union Release Time
Yesterday, Media Trackers reported the Ohio Centerville Classroom Teachers Association membership agreed to a new collective bargaining agreement that is still waiting on approval from…
Blog
Car Dealership Takes Advantage of Union Tactics
A common practice of labor unions is to use myriad tactics -- protests, picketing, intimidation, and coordinating with progressive allies -- to apply pressure on…
Blog
Minimum Wage Increase Is Still Bad Policy
For the past two years, President Obama has proposed raising the federal minimum wage in his State of the Union address. The main…
Blog
The “California Rule” and the “The Fall of Pacific Grove”
In my previous post, I described the "California rule," which puts state governments in a legal straitjacket when trying to reform underfunded public pensions.
Blog
The Law Should Not Enable Union Violence
A general contractor is approached by a representative of a local union and told he “needed to hire a certain number of his guys.” When…
Blog
How the “California Rule” Holds Back Pension Reform
These days, local governments announcing bankruptcy seems like routine in California. Since the onset of the 2008 financial crisis, many state and local governments have…
Blog
To Enact Pension Reform, Make Good Policy Good Politics
In my previous post, I looked at some basic principles that should guide state policy makers when tackling pension reform. Now, we turn to the…
Blog
Who Wants to See Their State Go Broke?
Few people would raise their hands when asked that question. But actually putting a state's financing on sound footing is difficult in practice. That makes…
Blog
Obama FY 2015 Budget: Aviation Funding Recommendation Not Great, But a Step in the Right Direction
President Obama released his Fy 2015 budget today. Like his past budgets, as I noted in a previous post discussing the highway and…
Blog
“The bill doesn’t come due until well after the legislators who wrote the check have left office”
Thus describes an Illinois state Senator the challenge states face in reforming their public employee pension systems. Given that reality, it's astounding reform would ever…
Blog
Michigan Unions Intimidate Workers Who Take Advantage of Right-to-Work
It seems ever time union privilege is threatened, unions turn to intimidation.
Blog
Bad Highway Policy Is a Bipartisan Affair
Two major pieces of surface transportation policy news dropped this week. President Obama is readying the release of his budget, which will contain over $300…
Blog
Missouri Constitution Protects Workers’ Paychecks
Legislators in Missouri are attempting to enact paycheck protection legislation that would end the practice of using government resources to collect dues from government union…
Blog
Vermont Child Care Unionization Bill Is Back
In Vermont, home child care providers have rallied together to fend off unwanted legislation that would allow unions to organize providers in the 2012 and…
Blog
Federal Employment Is Not a Full Time Job
An excellent editorial by the Investor's Business Daily staff questioned whether "government work is a full time job?"…
Blog
UAW Cites “Interference,” Appeals Volkswagen Vote
In an example of the pot calling the kettle black, the United Auto Workers union has filed an appeal with the National Labor Relations Board…
Blog
GSA Contest to Identify and Reduce Travel Inefficiencies: Eliminate Official Time
According to a recent General Services Administration announcement, the agency is dolling out a combined $90,000 in prizes to individuals who can "design and create…
Blog
Big Labor’s Insatiable Greed
Yesterday, the Fiscal Times ran an article entitled, "Big Labor’s Mounting Feud with Barack Obama."…
Blog
Minimum Wage Increase to Wipe Out 500,000 Jobs
"Boosting the federal minimum wage as President Barack Obama and congressional Democrats are proposing" would "cut employment by roughly 500,000 jobs, Congress' nonpartisan budget analyst…
Blog
Phoenix City Council Disregards Union Release Time Ruling
In a prior post, I discussed how the Goldwater Institute has resurrected the constitutional amendment, known as the "Gift Clause," that restricts state and local…
Blog
Chicago Government Unions Advocate against the Public Interest
Proponents of public-sector unionism claim it creates amicable labor-management relations and leads to an efficient, effective government workforce, which in turn promotes the public interest.
Blog
Growing Support for Road User Charges Will Be Highlighted at March Conference
I’ve written about the importance of charging road users for their road use for some time. Moving toward a truly user-pays system will require significant…
Blog
UAW Loses Volkswagen Election
A little over two years ago, soon-to-be former United Auto Workers President Bob King said that “organizing foreign auto plants is a matter of life…
Blog
Mississippi Bills Aim to Eliminate Union Privileges
Yesterday, the Mississippi Senate passed three bills that rein in union privilege.
Blog
Union Support for Minimum and Living Wage Laws Based on Self-Interest
Across the country, labor unions advocate for increases in the minimum wage, along with proposals to create "living wage" laws. Unions publicly argue that these…
Blog
Ambush Elections Diminish the Understanding They Seek
Workers would have less time to study for their huge, life-changing test of whether to unionize, under a new, proposed Obama administration rule that nonsensically claims…
Blog
CEI Podcast for February 12, 2014: Are Cell Phones Coming to an Airplane Near You?
CEI Fellow Marc Scribner opposes a bill that would ban in-flight cell phone usage on airplanes. He believes that decision should be left to airlines,…
Blog
Unintended Consequences of Employee Rights Poster Rule
In the past several years, both the National Labor Relations Board and Department of Labor have required various kinds of employers to hang a "poster"…
Blog
House Committee to Markup Bill Banning In-Flight Cell Phone Calls
Tomorrow morning (Tuesday, February 11), the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee will markup the Prohibiting In-Flight Voice Communications on Mobile Wireless Devices Act (H.R.
Blog
More Equality in the U.S. Than in Europe: When the Minimum Wage Buys More in the U.S.
France and England may have higher minimum wages than most of the U.S. does, but things cost so much there that minimum-wage workers can afford less stuff…
Blog
NLRB Proposes Ambush Election Regulation
As I previously noted in a December post, as soon as the National Labor Relations Board settled its lawsuit with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce…
Blog
NLRB Pro-Union Bias Takes Away Worker Choice
Now that the National Labor Relations Board -- the agency responsible for governing private-sector labor disputes -- has a full quorum, it is ready to…
Blog
USDOT Calls for Connected Vehicle Mandate; Security and Privacy Concerns Remain
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) announced today it would chart a regulatory path that would require all new automobiles to be equipped with…
Blog
Long-Suspected TSA Abuse and Incompetence Confirmed by Former TSA Employee
Politico Magazine has a disturbing article by former transportation security officer Jason Edward Harrington. At least it would be disturbing if it wasn’t largely just a confirmation…
Blog
State of the Union: More on the President’s Debunked Wage Gap Claim
Aloysius Hogan has already debunked the president's wage gap claim in his State of the Union Address in an earlier post, noting that labor…
Blog
Arizona Judge Rules Union Release Time Unconstitutional
After about two years of litigation by the Goldwater Institute, the practice of union release time in Arizona has been declared unconstitutional.
Blog
State of the Union: President Gets Minimum Wage and Gender Pay Gap Wrong
President Obama surprised few in his State of the Union address, which was dominated by egalitarian and populist themes. The president is entitled to his…
Blog
State of the Union: Economic Band-Aids for Poverty and Unemployment
One of progressivism’s most admirable traits is its concern for the little guy. But many progressive policies for alleviating poverty, unemployment, and other social problems…
Blog
CEI Experts on the State of the Union
ECONOMIC MOBILITY Iain Murray, Vice President for Strategy: “The fact is: Today’s America is divided between those who work…
Blog
Idaho Constitution: Tax Dollars to Private Entities Is Illegal
Year in and year out, Idaho lawmakers’ inaction keeps in place wasteful practices that funnel tax dollars to special interest groups.
Blog
Federal Government Underreporting Union Official Time
In a recent FedSmith.com article, author Robert Dietriech gives three reasons why union official time data collected by the federal government understates the extent of…
Blog
Pennsylvania Bill Challenges Union Privilege
Pennsylvania government unions are spreading misinformation about a bill that would end the practice of public employers deducting union dues from members' paychecks.
Blog
OSHA Injury and Illness Name-and-Shame Rule
Under the guise of improving safety in the workplace, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced a proposed rule called, "Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries…
Blog
Reforming Air Traffic Control Is Key to the Future Health of American Aviation
When we travel by air, the hassles of getting through airport security and delayed flights tend to weigh most on our minds. Few of us…
Blog
U.S. Supreme Court Justices Seem Skeptical of Obama’s NLRB Recess Appointments
On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in National Labor Relations Board v. Noel Canning. Their ruling will determine whether the president may…
Blog
Unemployment Insurance: Congressional Scorecard Update
On January 7, the Senate voted to end debate on the Emergency Unemployment Compensation Extension Act S. 1845, sponsored by Sen. Jack Reed (RI-D), which…
Blog
Loss of Economic Freedom Takes a Toll on Small Businesses
The 2014 edition of the Heritage Foundation/Wall Street Journal Index of Economic Freedom is set for release next week, and for America, the news…
Blog
Fate of Homecare Providers Rests in the hands of U.S. Supreme Court
In January, the U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear arguments for Harris v. Quinn. A case that will determine whether a state can force…
Blog
With Declining Membership, Wisconsin Teachers Unions Consider Merger
The the corporate world, mergers are generally considered a sign of confidence, as companies seek to expand their operations. Within organized labor, by contrast, they're…
Blog
Why Workers Deserve the Employee Rights Act, Part 3: Paycheck Protection
In the first installment of “Why Workers Deserve the Employee Rights Act,” the topic was secret-ballot elections and how a private vote in a union…
News Release
CEI Will Score Senate Labor Vote Today
Washington, DC, Jan. 6, 2014 – The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) will score today’s vote in the U.S. Senate on the motion to proceed to…
Blog
Extending benefits would do more harm
Unemployment insurance extensions in the past five years have kept at least 600,000 people out of the labor force, because people tend to ride a…
Blog
CEI Podcast for January 2, 2014: Rethinking Unemployment Insurance
With unemployment still painfully high more than five years after the financial crisis, Senior Fellow in Labor Policy Aloysius Hogan thinks that re-extending unemployment insurance…
Blog
The Great Italian Auto Bailout — Courtesy of U.S. Taxpayers
At the beginning of 2014, Detroit may be bankrupt, but they're cheering the five-year-old U.S. auto bailout in Italy. That's because after being the beneficiary…
Blog
Union Spending against Right-to-Work Efforts
According to an Associated Press report, several states are eyeing labor law reforms to end the practice of forcing employees to pay union dues as…
Blog
Why Workers Deserve the Employee Rights Act, Part 2: Union Recertification
In Part 1 of "Why Workers Deserve the Employee Rights Act," the focus was on the ERA provision that mandates secret-ballot elections and how a…
Blog
BLS Data: Government Workers Miss Work 50 Percent More than Private Sector Workers
A blog post at buyhappiness.net cites recent Bureau of Labor Statistics data and reports that in 2012…
Blog
Why Workers Deserve the Employee Rights Act, Part 1: Secret Ballot Elections
In November, Senator Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Representative Tom Price (R-Ga.) introduced the Employee Rights Act, a bill that strengthens federal labor law to protect…
Blog
NLRB General Counsel: Guidance on Micro-Unions is Coming
Last Friday, at the Cornell School of Industrial and Labor Relations in Manhattan, the National Labor Relations Board general counsel Richard Griffin said the Board…
Blog
Minimum Wage Increases Harm the Young, Unskilled, and Less Educated
Minimum wage increases eliminate some jobs. Real world examples abound. As a business owner explains: The minimum wage kills jobs. End of story. I am…
Blog
GOVERNMENT UNIONS BROKE – AND NOW MUST FIX – DETROIT
Government unions broke Detroit. And unions – over their most stringent objections – are going to play a significant part in fixing it.
Blog
NLRB Ambush Elections Coming Soon
Yesterday, the National Labor Relations Board's savvy legal maneuver takes the labor agency one step closer to finalizing its ambush election regulation.
Washington Post
How Australia’s minimum wage differs from America’s (Letter)
Eugene Robinson [“An issue Democrats can win on,” op-ed, Dec. 7] argued that America’s minimum wage should be increased in part because it is lower…
Blog
Busybodies in Congress Prepared to Re-Prohibit Voice Communications During Flight
After two decades with a ban on the books, the Federal Communications Commission is set to consider allowing transmitting mobile devices on aircraft. On…
Human Events
Government unions broke – and now must fix – Detroit
Government unions broke Detroit. And unions – over their most stringent objections – are going to play a significant part in fixing it. U.S. Bankruptcy…
Blog
President Pushes Welfare Rather than Opportunity and Social Mobility in Speech about Inequality
"President Obama on Wednesday declared that addressing income inequality would be the focus of 'all' of the White House’s efforts 'for the rest of…
Blog
Union Release Time on the Ropes
Over two years ago, 16 NYPD officers were charged in a widespread ticket-fixing scam. And the criminal cases against the officers are still ongoing.
Blog
Labor Agencies’ Regulatory Agendas
As my colleague Wayne Crews comments in Forbes, the Obama administration tends to publish its regulatory agenda around holidays, or when "nobody is looking."…
News Release
Judge Upbraids Public-Sector Unions’ Refusal To Work To Clean Up The Mess They Made
WASHINGTON, Dec. 3 – A federal bankruptcy judge ruled Tuesday that Detroit was eligible to enter Chapter 9 bankruptcy, which means all of the city’s…
Human Events
UAW chief’s legacy to be decided in South
The Washington-based Competitive Enterprise Institute even put a message on a billboard near the factory in June that said: “Auto unions ate Detroit. Next meal…
Blog
AT THANKSGIVING, BIG GROCERY & BIG LABOR ATTACK COMPETITOR WAL-MART
If you’re one of the millions of Americans who will visit a Wal-Mart on the biggest shopping weekend of the year, don’t be surprised if…
Human Events
At Thanksgiving, Big Grocery & Big Labor Attack Wal-Mart
If you’re one of the millions of Americans who will visit a Wal-Mart on the biggest shopping weekend of the year, don’t be surprised if…
Blog
Unions’ Taxpayer Subsidized Activity
Taxpayers expect their government to spend tax dollars only on activities that benefit the public. But in Kentucky, the City of Louisville and Jefferson County…
Real Clear Policy
Unions’ Taxpayer Subsidized Activity
Taxpayers expect their government to spend tax dollars only on activities that benefit the public. But in Kentucky, the City of Louisville and Jefferson County…
Blog
Dumbest Reason to Be Skeptical of Autonomous Vehicles: They Might Cost Auto Mechanics Their Jobs
Today, the House Subcommittee on Highways and Transit of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee held a hearing on “How Autonomous Vehicles Will Shape the Future…
Blog
NLRB Considers Proposing Ambush Election Rule…Again
Finally, after a decade, the National Labor Relations Board is fully staffed with five Senate-confirmed members.
Blog
New Committee to Investigate Michigan Teachers Union Right to Work Violations
Although Michigan's right-to-work legislation took effect in March of this year, teachers have raised concerns that unions are using strong-arm tactics that prohibit them from…
News Release
On Right-To-Work Amendment: ‘Bravo for Senators from Kentucky and Mississippi … Shame on Sen. Reid’
WASHINGTON, Nov. 13 – Though their effort did not meet with success, U.S. Senators from Kentucky and Mississippi deserve thanks for their efforts to offer…
Human Events
I Don’t Hate the Government; Its Unions Are a Different Story
As a libertarian I am often asked why I “hate” the government. “Hate” is a strong word, so I’ll leave the question’s key assumption for…
Blog
Obama Administration Rule Exempts Big Labor from Obamacare Tax
In September, the Obama administration rejected union demands for subsidies offered under Obamacare, which are reserved for the uninsured and low-income workers.
Blog
Labor Ballot Measure Roundup
Voters around the country faced numerous ballot measures yesterday, of which many involved labor policy.
News Release
On Right-To-Work Amendment: ‘Bravo for Sen. McConnell and Sen. Paul – shame on Sen. Reid’
WASHINGTON, Nov. 6 – Though their effort did not meet with success, Kentucky’s U.S. Senators deserve thanks for their efforts to offer a National Right…
Blog
Memo to Road Socialists: There Is Nothing Unlibertarian about Road Pricing
Virginia just elected Democrat Terry McAuliffe as governor, as had been predicted by every poll conducted during the past few months -- although at a…
Blog
Senate Poised to Pass Employment Non-Discrimination Act
Yesterday, the Senate voted 61-to-30 to invoke cloture on the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which would ban workplace bias based on sexual orientation or…
Blog
House Passes Bill to Delay DOL Overreach
Last week, 30 Democrats in the U.S. House of Representative joined Republicans to approve the Retail Investor Protection Act, which delays the Department of Labor's…
Blog
Happy Halloween! FAA to Allow Portable Electronic Devices During All Flight Phases
A month ago, a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC) recommended that the agency drop its ban on portable electronic device (PED)…