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
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)…
News Release
Escalating trade war with China won’t fix the need for reform: CEI analysis
On Monday, China vowed to retaliate against nations that corporate with President Trump’s tariffs against Beijing, putting potential trade deals between the US and other…
Search Posts
Blog
Obama’s False Claims about Outsourcing and Corporate Taxes in the State of the Union Address
President Obama has spent billions of dollars in taxpayer money on subsidizing foreign firms through his failed "green energy" programs, so it was…
Citation
Employers Skeptical of Obama’s SOTU Promises
Blog
Obama’s State of the Union Address: More Failed Jobs Proposals?
My take on President Obama’s 2012 State of the Union address is at this link. It discusses one of the jobs…
Blog
Stimulus was Designed to Provide Pork and Payoffs, Not to Revive the Economy
Harvard University economist Jeffrey Miron argued that the $800 billion stimulus package wasn't even designed to stimulate the economy, but rather to benefit…
Blog
Law Schools Teach Junk, Exaggerate Their Students’ Job Prospects
Propped up by government subsidies and regulations requiring students to attend law school before taking the bar exam, law schools waste their students' time teaching…
Blog
Celebrate National School Choice Week
Openmarket.org This week, a collaboration of over 200 organizations will hold the second annual National School Choice Week. National School Choice Week highlights the need…
Blog
Dodd-Frank Claims 4,300 More Jobs, Reduces Consumer Choice in Mortgage Market
The Dodd-Frank law passed in 2010 in the name of “financial reform” has wiped out another 4,300 jobs: MetLife is closing down its growing…
Blog
Court Ruling Broadening Americans with Disabilities Act Will Harm Taxicab Safety and Cost Hundreds of Millions
A federal judge last month barred New York City's “Taxi and Limousine Commission from issuing permits for taxicabs unless they're accessible to people who…
Op-Eds
Immigrants Help Fuel Tech Growth
People are the most valuable resource. We see this most clearly among entrepreneurs, scientists, engineers, and innovators. Creating wealth and new ways of doing things…
Blog
Media: If You Wear Headphones while Walking, You’re as Good as Dead
Various media outlets are trying to scare the bejesus out of us by reporting on a new study published in this month's issue of Injury Prevention,…
Blog
Judge Criticizes American Law Schools
A prominent federal judge has added to the growing chorus of criticism for American law schools and their failure to provide practical training for…
Blog
Wisconsin union holding federal funds hostage
The Washington Examiner Federal health care funds are being held hostage by the Wisconsin Education Association Trust, a not-for-profit health insurance company created by…
Op-Eds
Wisconsin Union Holding Federal Funds Hostage
Federal health care funds are being held hostage by the Wisconsin Education Association Trust, a not-for-profit health insurance company created by the state’s largest…
Blog
Eleven More Solyndras in Obama Clean-Energy Program
There are 11 more Solyndras in the Obama administration’s clean-energy program, reports CBS News. These companies are in financial trouble — five have already…
Blog
CEI Podcast for January 12, 2012: Mistaken Deportations
Immigration Policy Analyst Alex Nowrasteh tells Jakadrien Turner's story and what it means for the immigration reform debate.
Blog
EEOC Says High-School Diploma is Discriminatory Requirement, Stretches Employment Laws to Harm Small Employers
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently posted a letter on its website claiming that it is illegal for employers to have a high-school diploma requirement…
Blog
Big Labor Political Influence Does Not Make Union Bosses Labor Experts
Openmarket.org A well-known fact is Big Labor’s powerful political influence. According to Opensecrets.org, five of the top 10 all-time federal campaign political donors are unions.
Blog
Supreme Court Rejects Obama Administration Power Grab Over Churches in Hosanna-Tabor v. EEOC
The Supreme Court has rejected the Obama administration's argument that it can dictate who churches hire as ministers or clergy in Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical…
Op-Eds
The Non-Union for Restaurant Workers
When is a union not a union? When it decides that organizing a majority of workers is too much trouble and that it can win…
Blog
New York MTA Contract Negotiations Show Dangers of Binding Arbitration
In most jurisdictions, government employees responsible for public safety and other essential government services are not allowed to strike. In exchange for unions giving up…
Blog
Regulation of the Day 204: How to Buy Liquor
Self-checkout lanes have been popping up in grocery stores across the country over the last several years. Some people worry that without the adult supervision…
Op-Eds
Mistaken Deportation of Texas Teen Highlights the Rigid, Incompetent Immigration Bureaucracy
The unintended consequences of government regulations on the U.S. economy are disastrous. Among the most harmful are regulations that restrict immigration—the movement of laborers and…
Citation
Obama’s Abuse of Power Threatens to Shut Down Senate
Op-Eds
No Time for Advice and Consent
On Wednesday, President Obama infuriated Republicans and threatened to spark a constitutional crisis when he announced he would make four recess appointments during a…
Blog
Judge Upholds Michigan Union Power Grab
A federal judge in Michigan has denied class action status to a lawsuit brought by a group of independent child care workers who objected to…
Blog
Rhode Island’s Bold Pension Reforms Point the Way Forward
To describe pension reform, Utah State Senator Dan Liljenquist put it best: "This is not a conservative-versus-liberal issue, this is a reality issue." Liljenquist…
Blog
Congressional Democrats Join Republicans’ Call for GAO Investigation into California High-Speed Rail Boondoggle
In a letter sent Tuesday to the Government Accountability Office, 11 House Democrats called on the watchdog agency to investigate California's high-speed rail program. The…
Politico
Left Bloggers Hail “New Obama”
Politico
F. Vincent Vernuccio: NLRB and Union Bosses
Vincent Vernuccio: NLRB and Union Bosses…
Blog
Public Pensions Fuel Government Growth
The straitened finances afflicting state and local governments across the nation have brought unprecedented scrutiny to government employees’ compensation, particularly pensions. As pro-market critics have…
Hot Air
Obama Follows Cordray Recess Appointment With Three More to NLRB
News Release
Obama Surprise Recess Appointments Are End-Run Around Democracy, Senate
Washington, DC, January 4, 2011 – President Obama’s decision to make a slew of surprise recess appointments today drew criticism from CEI experts.
Blog
Obamacare Causes Layoffs in Medical Device Industry, Harms Medical Innovation
Ramesh Ponnuru writes about the layoffs and lost jobs resulting from Obamacare's new tax on medical devices at Bloomberg News: A year from…
Blog
Driving Continues to Decline in 2011
October 2011 marked the eighth straight month [PDF] of declining year-over-year vehicle-miles traveled (VMT) in the U.S. Compared to October 2010, driving was down…
Blog
Pension Tsunami, Record Federal Spending Increase U.S. Debts by $4.2 Trillion; State Debts Explode
Massive budget deficits and mushrooming pension, Social Security, and Medicare obligations increased the federal government's long-term obligations by $4.2 trillion in 2011 -- more than three…
Hot Air
Georgia’s Anti-Capitalist Immigration Law
Portions of Georgia’s new anti-immigration law will go into effect on January 1. The law is part of a recent state-level…
Business Insider
Minnesota Battle Over Proposed Childcare Union Heats Up
Blog
America’s Businesses Get It: Immigration Is Good
Anti-immigration advocates believe that harsh new laws will drive illegal immigrants out of the United States. They ignore the fact that the primary victim…
Blog
Obamacare Stifles Job Creation, Causes Layoffs
At Bloomberg News, Andrew Puzder, CEO of CKE Restaurants, Inc., explains how the 2010 healthcare law is preventing jobs from being created and resulting…
Blog
Washington Post: “Obama’s Green Technology Program was Infused with Politics at Every Level”
The Obama administration’s green-energy programs were driven by politics, not the public interest or sound policies. As The Washington Post recently noted in discussing…
Blog
Gov. Mark Dayton (D-Big Labor)
National Right to Work Committee Trey Kovacs looks at Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton’s quest to empower union bosses by any means necessary: Minnesota State Senator…
Business Insider
UAW Speaks More Softly, Still Carries Big Stick
United Auto Workers President Bob King announced a change in strategy earlier in December, saying that his union would not target specific automakers in right-to-work…
Blog
Businessmen: Obamacare Stops Them from Hiring
Journalist John Stossel describes how "three successful businessmen came on" his TV show last week "to explain how Obamacare is a reason that unemployment stays…
National Right to Work Committee
Gov. Mark Dayton: D-Big Labor
Blog
Governor Dayton’s Baleful Influence on Labor Relations
Openmarket.org Minnesota State Senator Mike Parry (R-Waseca) recently caused a stir with strong accusations against Governor Mark Dayton. “It’s no secret that the labor…
Blog
Governor Dayton’s Baleful Influence on Labor Relations
Minnesota State Senator Mike Parry (R-Waseca) recently caused a stir with strong accusations against Governor Mark Dayton. “It's no secret that the labor unions helped…
National Right to Work Committee
Behind the UAW’s Aw Shucks Smile
Bob King’s pants are on fire. Or they would be if the old saying (“liar liar…” ) were true. The United Auto Workers (UAW) President…
News Release
Labor Rules Revamped by NLRB, Workers and Businesses Have Less Time to Make Big Decisions
Washington, DC, December 21, 2011 – The National Labor Relations Board on Wednesday announced a new rule aimed at rushing elections for union-organizing, whittling down…
Blog
Obama Administration Betrays America’s Friends Overseas
America is now “turning its back” on Iraqis who helped the U.S., contradicting Obama’s rhetoric on the campaign trail. Moqtada al-Sadr, a radical Anti-American…
The American Spectator
Obama’s Big Labor Wins a Big One
Unions have been disappointed by the Obama administration's inability to move their agenda forward. But they finally won a victory last week. This is bad…
