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
The ‘no hire, no fire’ era is starting to crack
Families gathering around the barbeque next Monday to celebrate the national day off from work will probably be grilling more hot dogs and cheap…
The Center Square
Don’t panic – Labor Day will still be around in the future
This Labor Day, instead of celebrating work, many Americans may be worrying about how much longer they will even have jobs in the age…
Blog
The trucker shortage debate: Government recruiting more truckers won’t solve trucking challenges
When I wrote my recent piece on why Trump’s Freedom Haulers initiative won’t fix the issues facing the trucking industry that Trump exacerbated…
Search Posts
Blog
Why Cross-Examination Rights Matter in Campus Sexual Harassment Cases under Title IX
As part of its broader attack on safeguards against false accusations, the federal Education Department is urging colleges to strip students and faculty of…
Blog
Failures of Auto Bailouts Hidden by Deceptive Accounting and Bogus Jobs Figures
Mounting evidence shows that the auto bailouts weren't worth it. They have been far more costly, and less successful, than claimed, as even liberal…
Blog
Wisconsin Proposal Hurts Craft Beer, Protects Big Brewers
In the battle between international brewing giants SABMiller and ABInBev, Wisconsin craft brewers could bear the heaviest burden. On May 31, the state legislature’s Joint…
Comment
Official Time: Good Value for the Taxpayer?
Full Testimony Available as a PDF Watch Video of the Hearing Here Official time does not represent good value…
Blog
Even Liberal Washington Post Casts Doubt on Auto Bailouts
"Only 16 percent of executives in the auto industry" support the Chrysler bailout, according to the Washington Post’s editorial today. I think the bailout…
Blog
NFL, Players in Court Today
Today is a crucial day in the ongoing labor dispute between the NFL and the supposedly disbanded players’ union, the NFLPA as they return to…
Blog
How Free Is America?
Pajamas Media Americans are accustomed to thinking of themselves as the freest people on Earth. Except that according to the Heritage Foundation’s 2011 Index of…
Blog
Official Time: Union Activity on the Taxpayers’ Dime
Government Executive summarizes the Office of Personnel Management’s report on the use of official time, whereby unionized federal employees carry out union business…
Blog
A Culture of Deceit
Last month Governor John Lynch issued a statement explaining his veto of HB 474 to make New Hampshire a right-to-work state. His explanation included:…
Study
The Battle for Michigan
Full Document Available in PDF Michigan’s economy has been weakening for years as the Big Three…
Citation
Lawmakers At Odds Over ‘Official Time’
Citation
“Official Time” or Unofficial Scam? Your Tax Dollars Are Being Used For Union Business.
Citation
Vincent Vernuccio on Official Time
CEI Labor Policy Counsel Vincent Vernuccio discusses unions using taxpayer money for their own organizational activities.
Blog
Report: Detroit River International Crossing (DRIC) Bridge Will Lose $4.5 Billion Over 20 Years
Via Peter Samuel of TOLLROADSnews, a new report from Conway MacKenzie estimates the proposed Detroit River International Crossing (DRIC) bridge would lose in…
Citation
Use Of ‘Official Time’ For Union Activity Is Scrutinized
Blog
California High-Speed Rail All Strung Out on Stimulus on the Outskirts of Town
Emily Washington of Market Urbanism highlights this Los Angeles Times article on the latest — depending on your outlook: hilarious or pathetic —…
News Release
Vincent Vernuccio to Testify Tomorrow at House Hearing on “Official Time”
Washington, D.C., May 31, 2011—Tomorrow, June 1, CEI Labor Policy Counsel Vincent Vernuccio will testify at a House Oversight Committee hearing on…
Blog
Yet More Proof that the Supreme Court is Not Pro-Business
The Supreme Court has ruled against the Chamber of Commerce's challenge to an Arizona law punishing businesses that hire illegal aliens by taking away…
Blog
Activist Judge Strikes Down Wisconsin Collective Bargaining Law — For Now
Government employee unions and their allies have tried just about everything to stop the efforts by Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker and Republicans in the legislature…
Blog
Lots of Waste, Fraud, and Abuse in the Stimulus, Which Will Cost $43 Billion More Than Expected
The Congressional Budget Office says the stimulus package will cost $43 billion more than estimated. The stimulus package is full of waste, fraud, and…
Op-Eds
Unsportsmanlike Conduct On The NFL Players Union
Today, only 7 percent of private sector workers belong to a union. Union membership has plummeted as unionized companies have become less competitive, in…
Blog
The Auto Bailouts: Still A Huge Loss for Taxpayers, and a Failure in Stemming Unemployment
Columnist Shikha Dalmia explains how the auto bailouts are a huge money loser for taxpayers and the economy as a whole, despite recent earnings…
Blog
NLRB Targets Boeing, Ignores Congress
It is now well known that the Obama administration is trying to use the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) as a battering ram to…
Blog
Education Department’s Gainful Employment Rule Was Based on Falsehoods
Earlier, CEI issued a study on an Education Department rule that is likely to backfire on students: the so-called "gainful employment rule" that is…
Blog
Mind-boggling Increase in Tuition Since 1960 Even as Students Learn Less and Less
There has been a truly mind-boggling increase in college tuition since 1960. For example, law school tuition has risen nearly 1,000 percent after adjusting…
The American Spectator
Unionization Via Regulation
Are unions desperate? When it comes to reviving their fortunes in the private sector, it certainly seems that way. Union leaders, unable to reverse…
The American Spectator
Project Labor Agreements could be used to undermine Right to Work laws and force double payment of benefits
Blog
California Card Check: Just Sign Here
The card check bill soon to be sitting on California Governor Jerry Brown’s desk is another attempt by labor unions to take away worker rights.
Blog
Obama Calls on Federal Agencies to Move to Alternative Fuel Vehicles by 2015
Today, President Obama issued a memorandum that directed executive agencies to develop purchasing and deployment plans for replacing the entire federal vehicle fleet with…
Blog
If You Can’t Defend It, Don’t Spend It
Openmarket.org Legislators in Louisiana are proposing an ingenious bill entitled, “Public Employee Bargaining Transparency Act” (PEBTA). If enacted, Louisiana would become only the seventh state…
Blog
The Politics of Public Pension Underfunding
To date, the debate over public pensions has focused largely on accounting methods — how best to estimate the level of current funding needed to…
Blog
If You Can’t Defend It, Don’t Spend It
Legislators in Louisiana are proposing an ingenious bill entitled, “Public Employee Bargaining Transparency Act” (PEBTA). If enacted, Louisiana would become only the seventh state to…
Blog
The Loony Left Era
The Economist has this to say about the NLRB’s pursuit of Boeing: The NLRB is an autonomous body, but its board members are appointed…
Blog
Stimulus Wiped Out a Million Private Sector Jobs
The economy may be slowly recovering, but that’s in spite of — not because of — the recent orgy of federal spending. Two economics professors,…
Blog
Trumka’s Empty Threat to Democrats
AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka is warning Democratic politicians today: Push our agenda, or we won’t support you in the 2012 election. It’s hard to imagine…
Blog
Forced Unionization: Bad for Business?
Only four short months ago President Obama said: If we make America the best place to do business, businesses should make their mark in…
The American Spectator
Will Unions Leave the Democrats?
CEI’s Labor Policy Counsel Vincent Vernuccio weighs in on AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka’s recent threat to Democratic leaders. Vincent…
Blog
In Other TSA News…
TSA officials recently performed a bomb drill at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, and didn't tell anyone about it in advance.
Blog
TSA Sing-Along
The good folks at Reason.tv have released an educational music video about the TSA featuring singer-songwriter-comedian Remy. Worth watching.
Blog
This Time, Many Jobs May Be Gone For Good
Pajamas Media Americans have a lover’s faith in technology. And no wonder: for much of American history, technological innovation has lifted millions out of poverty,…
Blog
Fighting Back Against Obama’s Big Labor Favoritism
Republicans in both Houses of Congress are answering the Obama administration’s overreach in union favoritism. Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), chairman of the House Oversight Committee…
Blog
Unionization by Regulation: House Oversight Committee Seeks Answers from Politicized NLRB, NMB
As unions continue to decline in their private sector membership, union leaders are seeking political solutions to their problems. President Obama will need organized labor’s support…
The American Spectator
If You Care About Immigration, You Should Care About the STAPLE Act
President Obama’s immigration speech last week suffered from political schizophrenia. Early on he bragged of his administration’s efforts to stop undocumented immigration, but later…
Blog
Senators Introduce Bill to Push Back against NLRB Overreach
Reacting to the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) blatant efforts to promote organized labor’s agenda, Sens. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), Jim DeMint (R-S.C.), and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.)…
Blog
Brookings Report: Time to Fix America’s Broken Transit Policy
Following my post yesterday on Portland’s immense rail transit waste comes this new report from the Brookings Institution. Released today, the report (and…
Blog
Raise Awareness on Your Own Time
Openmarket.org The Washington Examiner had a piece that hits close to home, as I have seen this waste firsthand. I’m sure many in D.C.
Blog
Raise Awareness on Your Own Time
The Washington Examiner had a piece that hits close to home, as I have seen this waste firsthand. I’m sure many in D.C. area…
Blog
Is Trade Adjustment Assistance a Pre-Condition for Pending Trade Agreements?
Today, at the Senate Finance Committee’s hearing on the U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement (FTA), the committee chairman, ranking Republican, and the U.S. Trade Representative’s…
Blog
Who’s Afraid of Walmart?
As surely as summer follows spring, it seems like every new Walmart store opening announcement in a major city is now followed by protests. The…
Blog
Rail Transit Pipe Dream is Alive and Not-So-Well in Portland
If you’ve been following the free-market critiques of rail transit, you know that Portland, while frequently touted as “the city that works” by lefty…
Staff & Scholars
Sean Higgins
Research Fellow
- Deregulation
- Labor and Employment
Ryan Young
Senior Economist and Director of Publications
- Antitrust
- Business and Government
- Regulatory Reform
Ivan Osorio
Editorial Director
- Labor and Employment
Iain Murray
Vice President for Strategy and Senior Fellow
- Banking and Finance
- Trade and International