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
Court rejects New York bid to take over federal labor enforcement
An effort by the New York legislature to usurp the role of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), the main federal labor law enforcement agency,…
Law & Liberty
America’s Hidden Judiciary
Unbeknownst to most Americans, federal regulatory agencies have their own court system for adjudicating disputes that businesses and citizens have with regulators. These agencies rely…
Blog
New York, California make a play for federal labor law enforcement
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), the main federal labor law enforcement agency, currently lacks a quorum to act. Ordinarily, that type of federal…
Search Posts
Blog
Education Cuts Needed; Massive Spending Fuels Waste, Deficits
Education expert Neal McCluskey earlier lamented the failure of House Republicans to propose meaningful cuts in education spending, “despite the fact that the ivory…
Blog
Will the players union sink the NFL?
The Examiner “American Ills Not Caused by Unions,” screamed a recent headline in the Detroit News. Really? OK, forget about the union-strong-armed public-sector salaries and…
News Release
Obama Budget Fails On Regulatory Reform
Washington, D.C., February 14, 2011 — President Barack Obama has submitted a $3.73 trillion spending budget blueprint for fiscal 2012, blowing well past President George…
Blog
The Pitfalls of Unionizing the TSA
Robert Verbruggen wrote recently about the downside of unionizing the TSA in the National Review, taking issue with the Obama Administration’s decision to allow the…
Citation
CEI Monitoring Labor Regulations
Blog
PolitiFact: Obama Made False Claims About Health Care, Taxes, and Court Rulings
PolitiFact, which earlier took Obama’s side about whether Obamacare is a government takeover of health care, now is criticizing President Obama for making…
One News Now
Unions advised to heed ObamaCare
Blog
Transparency Bill Proposed Solution to Public Employee Pension Problems
At a House subcommittee meeting discussing one proposed solution for public employee pensions, a transparency bill designed to trace federal and state funds set aside…
Blog
Common Sense: Making Union Officials Help Union Members
Recently, there have been numerous protests about Republican legislation that it is supposedly anti-union and limiting the rights of workers. I don’t buy it. Let…
Blog
Politicans Using Crisis for Political Gain
Here is a letter to the editor responding to the New York Times editorial “Their Real Agenda”: The author claims politicians are using the…
Blog
Another TSA Nightmare
The writer Andrew Ian Dodge shares his painful experience at the hands of the TSA at this link. The TSA inflicted prolonged pain on…
News Release
CEI Announces Launch of WorkplaceChoice.org
Washington, D.C., February 7, 2011 — The Competitive Enterprise Institute is proud to announce the launch of WorkplaceChoice.org, a new labor policy resource…
Blog
TSA Given Approval To Unionize
As the New York Times says, this is a debate that has been brewing for potentially a decade: the “right” for Transportation Security Administration…
Blog
The Double Edged Sword: How Union Leaders Support Policy that Hurts Union Members
In the 2008 and 2010 elections, labor unions were one of the largest contributors and supporters of President Obama and Democrats. Union officials applauded Obamacare…
Blog
When Unions Refuse To Take “No” for an Answer
By Barbara Comstock/Capital Research Center In November 2010, Delta Air Lines Flight Attendants voted against unionization. This was the third time that the employees have…
Blog
Arlington County Kills I-5/395 HOT Lanes Inside the Beltway
An innovative project that would have converted high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes to high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes, increased highway capacity, reduced congestion, expanded transit, and improved…
One News Now
Leviathan
How many Americans work in government? That’s a difficult question to answer. Officially, as of 2009, the federal government employed 2.8 million individuals out of…
Blog
Smart-Growthers Still Upset by Introduction of Newfangled Horseless Carriages
As somewhat of an anti–“smart growth” groupie, I try to keep up with their various online writings. Everyday, it’s like finding buried treasure. Take yesterday,…
One News Now
Is the TSA More Interested in Airport Security Or Supporting Unions?
Blog
TSA Shuts Door on Private Airport Screening Program That Exposed TSA’s Inefficiency
The Transportation Security Administration has shut the door on a private airport screening program that was making the inefficient agency look bad by outperforming it…
Blog
Full Employment, Motherhood, and Apple Pie
These are not good economic times for labor unions, whose membership continues a long decline in the private sector. However, they remain a potent…
Blog
Thundersnow and the Nightmare Commute
Last night’s Surprise Snowpocalypse froze traffic in place for upwards of 13 hours. Check out this visual above for where the traffic accumulated, from…
Blog
Marketing and Transit Shelters
Here’s a great example of private entrepreneurship making public life a little sweeter. Caribou Coffee has launched a new campaign in Minnesota, touting warmed…
Blog
The Supreme Court is NOT Pro-Business
Once again ruling against America’s employers, the Supreme Court Monday broadened the reach of the 1964 Civil Rights Act’s ban on retaliation. It overturned…
One News Now
Thompson v. North American Stainless
Blog
Obama’s State of the Union Address: More of the Same on Trains
For the second year in a row, President Barack Obama has fretted over the “faster trains” of Europe and China in his State of…
Blog
Obama’s State of the Union: A Blueprint for Crony Capitalism and Costly Educational Failures
In his State of the Union address, President Obama called for even more spending on his cronies — what he euphemistically referred to as…
Blog
Obama State of the Union Flunks Fact Check; More Wasteful Spending and “A Million Points of Trite”
The Associated Press fact-checked Obama’s State of the Union address last night, and found it to be misleading in many ways: “The ledger…
Blog
Special interests propel harmful legislation and block needed reforms
The Examiner At the end of The Wizard of Oz, the great and powerful wizard is revealed to be a little man behind a curtain,…
Blog
Thoughts on the State of the Union and Education in America
In the Washington Examiner, I discuss some of the president’s anticipated proposals in his State of the Union address today. The president is…
One News Now
UAW unhappy with success of foreign businesses
Blog
What Should POTUS Say During SOTU?
Freedom Action‘s Myron Ebell, while he isn’t optimistic, answers on a POLITICO forum: In an ideal world, President Barack Obama would use his…
One News Now
Obama Backs Collective Bargaining for Airport Screeners
Blog
Andrew Sullivan Blames Tea Party for Budget-Busting Deal That He, Not It, Supported
The deficit is largely the result of “feel-good” bipartisan policies supported by the political establishment. But rather than taking credit for the deficit it…
Blog
Students Learn Less in College, Even As Education Spending Skyrockets
“Nearly half of the nation’s undergraduates show almost no gains in learning in their first two years of college, in large part because colleges don’t…
Washington Times
UAW Doesn’t Care What You Think
United Auto Workers (UAW) President Bob King recently pledged $60 million of his union’s money to pressure foreign automakers into unionizing their employees. He…
Washington Times
Critics say NLRB pursuing card check outside legislative process
The Republican victories last November dashed organized labor’s hopes of Congress passing the Employee Free Choice Ace (EFCA), especially its card check provision, which would…
Blog
New York City Taxi Alliance Opposes Competition
From their webpage, we see a press release denouncing Mayor Bloomberg’s decision to allow livery cars (limousines, personal hired cars, etc.) to pick…
Blog
Vincent Vernuccio on Unions’ Public Image
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxnvlndMyjY 285 234]…
Blog
Merit-Based Pay Benefits Baltimore
A milestone achievement has occurred in Baltimore: teachers with the recently negotiated contract will receive merit-based pay. This is a striking difference from the…
Blog
An Incrementalist Approach to Transportation Extremists
Architecture writer Karrie Jacobs has a new article up at Metropolis magazine’s website, “The Incrementalists,” in which she derides the supposed slow-and-steady course chartered…
Blog
King Ignores His “Principles”
UAW’s president Bob King has already blatantly disregarded his “Principles for Fair Union Elections.” In his effort to unionize foreign automakers, it is clear the…
Blog
Harper’s vs. UAW
When can one expect leftists to oppose unionization of a business? When it’s their own. That’s the case at Harper‘s magazine right now, where some…
Blog
Will UAW Seek Foreign Help to Unionize American Workers?
America has a vibrant and successful auto industry — just largely outside of Detroit. For years, many foreign automakers’ American divisions have been successful at…
Blog
NLRB Litigates for Less Freedom
n another demonstration of the overreaching power of the federal government, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is preparing to sue Arizona, South Carolina, South…
Blog
NLRB Litigates for Less Freedom
In another demonstration of the overreaching power of the federal government, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is preparing to sue Arizona, South Carolina, South…
Washington Times
Unions Increasingly Unpopular
Washington Times
Vincent Vernuccio on Unions’ Public Image
CEI Labor Policy Counsel Vincent Vernuccio discusses the recent attempt of a union to gain public support…
Blog
D.C. Installs Private Car Charging Station
Remember when the Prius first hit the market, and the D.C. Beltway authorities opened the HOV lanes to electric cars as an incentive to switch?…
Blog
CEI Podcast for January 12, 2011: Public-Private Partnerships
Land-use and Transportation Policy Analyst Marc Scribner talks about his new CEI Issue Analysis, "The Limitations of Public-Private Partnerships."…
Blog
US Loses Ground in 2011 Index of Economic Freedom
The U.S. dropped from 8 to 9 on the just-released “Index of Economic Freedom” put out by the Heritage Foundation and the Wall Street…
Blog
Troubles in Central Planning: New York City Cabs
Via the New York Times, an article with empirical evidence that regulatory incentives encourage cabs to disappear around 5pm, just when they are needed…
Blog
Employee Rights at the Discretion of Unions
The AFL-CIO has filed a formal complaint against Roquette for the ongoing lockout of union employees. The union claims that Roquette refused their terms of…
Blog
Commonsense Proposals for Sustainable Government
In the midst of federal and state deficits at record levels, politicians are attempting to run the government similar to a business. Elected officials are…
Yahoo News
Experts say Metro escalator woes product of union inefficiency
Blog
SEIU Arbitrates Life or Death
In two recent reports revolving around the Service Employee International Union have shown their callous disregard for human life, in the name of contract negotiations…
Blog
Committee Name Change Puts Big Labor on Offensive
In the midst of the Republican takeover of Congress labor union officials have been vigilant to the changes that are sure to come concerning labor…
Blog
Committee Name Change Puts Big Labor on Offensive
In the midst of the Republican takeover of Congress labor union officials have been vigilant to the changes that are sure to come concerning labor…
Blog
More Signs of Incompetence in Washington, D.C. Transit System
In the latest sign of dysfunction at the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (“Metro”), the struggling subway system has appointed a supervisor of escalators…
Blog
What Government Unions Want: One, Two, Many Californias
That the large Republican gains in the 2010 midterm elections pose a setback for organized labor’s agenda is hardly news. What will be newsworthy is…
Blog
New York Snow Debacle Shows: It’s Government Unions vs. Taxpayers
The longstanding alliance between Democratic politicians and government employee unions has come under increasing strain, as I recently noted in a Washington Times op…
Blog
Media Continue Spreading High-Speed Rail Misinformation
Following the Obama administration’s decision to revoke Ohio and Wisconsin’s High-Speed Intercity Passenger Rail (HSIPR) Program funding that was included in the American Recovery…
Blog
Update on D.C. Metro Bag Inspections
Last night, a crowded audience gathered at the WMATA headquarters to discuss the recent decision to begin randomly screening passengers bags for potential explosives. It…
Blog
Highway Trust Fund’s Funding Guarantees are the Problem
Streetsblog laments incoming Republicans’ alleged attempt to “hoard” Highway Trust Fund dollars as a budget gimmick. At issue is a proposed change to…
Yahoo News
Rekindling The American DREAM
The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act (DREAM Act) died a slow death before Christmas, failing to gain the 60 votes necessary to…
Blog
TSA’s High Failure Rate Is the Least of its Problems
If policymakers were rational, they would give twenty times more attention to lightning strike prevention than to terrorism. But they aren't, and they don't.
Blog
Union Holds New York Hostage
Public anger over New York City’s botched snow plowing effort this week has turned to the city’s sanitation workers union — for good reason.
Blog
The College Diploma Fraud and Its Consequences
Retired professor Robert Weissberg has a fascinating article at The American Thinker called “The College Diploma Fraud.” It describes how worthless many college degrees have…
Yahoo News
Union Snow Cleanup
CEI Labor Policy Counsel Vincent Vernuccio discusses the union impact on the NYC snow cleanup.
Blog
Alfred E. Kahn, 1917-2010
The man behind airline deregulation passed away yesterday at age 93. Let us learn from his example of a life well lived.
Blog
Time for Big Cuts in Education Spending?
America spends far more on education than countries like Germany, Japan, Australia, Ireland, and Italy, both as a percentage of its economy, and in absolute…
Blog
The Streetcar Delusion: Minneapolis Receives Funding to Bolster Wasteful Rail Transit
Delusional Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood continues to flush taxpayer dollars down the toilet on increasingly idiotic rail programs. The latest example of LaHood’s anti-mobility…
Blog
The Obama Administration’s Misguided War on For-Profit Colleges
In Forbes, economist Richard Vedder of Ohio University documents the blunders behind the Obama administration’s war on for-profit colleges that wiped out $8 billion…
Blog
CEI Podcast — December 21, 2010: What’s Next for Immigration Reform?
CEI Policy Analyst Alex Nowrasteh goes over the good and the bad of the DREAM Act, which recently stalled in the Senate, and offers his…
Study
Allow Immigrants to Help Fill America’s Need for Workers
Congress should implement more flexible, less restrictive immigration laws, with the ultimate goal of an immigration system that lets law-abiding workers from anywhere fill any…
Study
Allow Workers and Employers to Work without Burdensome Regulation
Full Document Available in PDF One of America’s greatest economic…
Yahoo News
Public Employee Unions Bankrupting States
CEI Labor Policy Counsel Vincent Vernuccio discusses who will confront public employee unions over their unsustainable pensions.
Blog
Rip-Off: College Tuition Bubble and Debt Burdens Grow Worse
Forbes magazine recently blew the whistle on how skyrocketing college tuition is ripping off the public. Thanks to some colleges’ greed, and the federal and state financial…
Blog
High-Speed Rail as the New Political Football?
Over at National Journal‘s Transportation Experts blog, Fawn Johnson asks whether or not high-speed rail has become a new political football in the United…
Blog
Live Blogging: “Fixing The World Economy: Stresses And Solutions”
This is a Live Blog of a Thomson Reuters Event on “Fixing the World Economy.” The speakers are Dominique Strauss-Kahn, International Monetary Fund and Chrystia…
Blog
Useless College Degrees Proliferate; Millions Waste Lives in Academic Bubble
“Do we need more college grads?,” asks John Leo in Minding the Campus. The answer is surely no: a study highlighted in the Chronicle…
Yahoo News
Construction Costs Could Rise in Louisiana if Union Plan Advances
Yahoo News
Democrats Diverging From Unions
Government employee unions have long been one of the Democratic Party’s most loyal and dedicated constituencies. For years, Democratic politicians have supported public employee unions’…
Blog
Unemployment Benefits Keep People from Working
Wintery Knight has an interesting discussion of how unemployment benefits keep people from working, drawing on coverage from The New York Times and academic…
Yahoo News
Wal-Mart Case Bigger Than Company
Blog
More Disincentives to Work, Thanks to the Federal Government and the Stimulus Package
Thanks to food stamps, Medicaid, and housing subsidies, and other welfare benefits, many “poor” people have far more disposable income than self-supporting households earning $40,000…
Blog
Are Government Employee Unions Losing the Democrats?
Government employee unions have long been renowned as one of the Democratic Party’s most loyal and dedicated supporting constituencies. For years, Democratic politicians have supported…
Blog
New Fast Food Restaurants Banned in South Los Angeles
New fast-food restaurants are now banned in South Los Angeles. Say goodbye to many entry-level jobs in that poor urban area. The cockamamie idea behind this ban is…
Blog
Stimulus Impact: Zero, or Less Than Zero?
In The Wall Street Journal, economists John F. Cogan and John B. Taylor argue that the impact of the $800 billion “Obama stimulus” was…
Blog
17 Million Unnecessary College Degrees; Obama Administration Seeks to Increase the Number
In America today, 317,000 waiters and waitresses have college degrees. Over 18,000 parking lot attendants have college degrees. So do thousands of janitors.
Blog
Supreme Court to Hear Wal-Mart v. Dukes
The Supreme Court voted to hear Wal-Mart v. Dukes, granting Wal-Mart’s petition for certiorari. The Supreme Court will decide whether a class-action rule…
Blog
Deal to Explode Deficits by $900 Billion Will Burden States and Employers With More Unemployment Costs
President Obama and Republican leaders reached a deal to extend the Bush tax cuts for two years — and temporarily reduce social security payroll taxes…
Blog
Why D.C. Metro Escalators Are Always Broken: Incentives Matter
For Washingtonians wondering why Metro is always on the fritz, check out my piece over at The Examiner about how WMATA unions pay employees…
Blog
Seattle Land-Use Regulation Liberalization Redux
Stephen Smith of Market Urbanism responds to my response to his question, asking if I thought Seattle’s proposed land-use liberalization bill was a…
Yahoo News
Vincent Vernuccio on Federal Worker Pay
CEI Labor Policy Counsel Vincent Vernuccio discusses the truth about President Obama's recent pay freeze for federal employees. Many workers will still see their pay…
Blog
Unemployment Jumps to 9.8 Percent; Stimulus and New Regulations Wipe Out Jobs
Unemployment has jumped to 9.8 percent. The population has grown recently, but the number of jobs has remained virtually flat. The White House…
Blog
The College Debt Bubble: Is It Ready to Explode?
“Is the College Debt Bubble Ready to Explode?,” asks Laura Rowley at Yahoo! Finance. College tuition has skyrocketed much more than housing did during…
Yahoo News
Best of the Web Today: Daffy Ducks
Yahoo News
The Not So Big Chill
Yahoo News
Vincent Vernuccio on the Federal Pay Freeze
CEI Labor Policy Counsel Vincent Vernuccio explains how President Obama’s recent pay freeze will still allow pay…
