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
Pardon me boys, is this the Special Interest Express?
The Washington Post published a smart editorial on Monday on why the proposed Railway Safety Act is a bad idea. The legislation is…
News Release
21st Century Worker Act Aims to End Worker Classification Confusion
Today, Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) introduced the 21st Century Worker Act, a much needed practical step to clear up persistent confusion surrounding worker classification under…
News Release
92,000 jobs were lost in February, turbulent labor market continues: CEI analysis
The latest Bureau of Labor Statistics’ report shows 92,000 jobs were lost in February, indicating a turbulent labor market. Given today’s report, attention will…
Search Posts
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…
Citation
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…
Op-Eds
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…
Blog
NLRB vs. Arizona, South Dakota
By Chris Woodward/Onenewsnow.com A labor policy expert is blasting the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) for filing lawsuits over secret ballot legislation. The legal complaints…
One News Now
NLRB vs. Arizona, South Dakota
Blog
Congressional Economics
Congress might as well pass a law guaranteeing an above-average lifestyle for all Americans.
News Release
Obama Gives Half-Hearted Speech on Immigration Reform
Washington, D.C., May 10, 2011 — The Competitive Enterprise Institute is cautiously optimistic about President Obama’s call for comprehensive immigration reform. Some of his…
Blog
New CBO Pension Report: Underfunding Could Be Higher
That state and local governments face serious pension funding problems isn't a particularly controversial contention. However, the question of how much they're underfunded by is…
Blog
Progress on Free Trade — With Strings Attached
Looks like there could finally be some progress on long-pending free trade agreements (FTAs). Yesterday U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk said that the administration…
Blog
Union Health Dependent on Obamacare
Openmarket.org The Obama administration through Obamacare (Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act) steadily gives competitive advantages to Big Labor. Benefits for top political donors of…
Blog
Under Obama, Running Out of Money Is a Success
Big Government Only in Washington would running out of money and prematurely limiting a program be considered a success. This Friday (May 6,) Obamacare’s first…
Blog
Union Health Dependent on Obamacare
The Obama administration through Obamacare (Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act) steadily gives competitive advantages to Big Labor. Benefits for top political donors of the…
One News Now
Feds accused of ‘coercion,’ ‘union bullying’
One News Now
Under Obama, Running Out of Money Is a Success
Only in Washington would running out of money and prematurely limiting a program be considered a success. This Friday (May 6,) Obamacare’s first handout program…
One News Now
States to NLRB: Get out of our way
Blog
D.C. Councilmembers Propose Taxicab Medallion System… Again
Washington, D.C., is one of the five taxicab jurisdictions in the country that allows for essentially free entry. While the cab situation in D.C. is…
Blog
The Battle for Wisconsin
Capital Research Center Wisconsin is the birthplace of American public-sector unionism. In 1930s the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) first organized…
Real Clear Markets
The NLRB Overreaches – Once Again
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has gone lawsuit crazy. With the U.S. House of Representatives now under Republican control, the Board is now…
Blog
Obama Administration Ignores the Will of States
Openmarket.org Recent National Labor Relations Board actions have revealed some disconcerting truths about the vision of the Obama Administration. The litigation against South Dakota…
Blog
Obama Administration Ignores the Will of States
Recent National Labor Relations Board actions have revealed some disconcerting truths about the vision of the Obama administration. The litigation against South Dakota and…
Blog
CEI Podcast for April 28, 2011: High-Speed Rail
Land Use and Transportation Policy Analyst Marc Scribner looks at China's experience with high-speed rail, and finds that it may not be a very good…
Blog
Political Bailouts for Underfunded Union Pensions
While the nation's attention has focused on government employee unions' fight to retain their collective bargaining privileges, unions in the private sector are in an…
Blog
There Is No More Fat to Trim from Government Budgets
Over the last five years, the DC Metro has spent $2.4 million on back pay... for work that was never performed.
Blog
Faulty Public Pension Accounting: A Problem too Big to Ignore
One reason the ongoing debate over collective bargaining for government employees has been so loud is that the stakes are so high -- for unionized…
Real Clear Markets
The Unhappy Anniversary Of Arizona’s Anti-Immigrant Law
Just as supporters of Arizona’s anti-immigration law (SB 1070) were set to celebrate its first anniversary on April 23, the U.S. Court of Appeals blocked…
Blog
Randal O’Toole on the Future of Automobility
Cato’s Randal “Antiplanner” O’Toole discusses replacing the gas tax with tolls and vehicle miles traveled (VMT) taxes, the importance of signal coordination and adaptive…
Blog
High-Speed Rail: A Bad Idea in the U.S., a Bad Idea in China
Today, Stuart Varney of Fox Business Network hosted Andy Kunz, the honcho of the lobbying outfit U.S. High Speed Rail Association. His advisory…
Blog
Unions taking work away
By Chris Wodward/Onenewsnow.com According to one researcher, union hypocrisy has been sighted in Seattle, Washington. CleanScapes, a private trash collection company based in Seattle, offered…
Real Clear Markets
Union Retreat May Mean no More Slush Funds
The news that the Firefighters’ union is going to stop spending money at the Federal level to defend its privileges at state and local level is…
One News Now
Unions taking work away
Blog
CEI Podcast for April 21, 2011: The Male-Female Pay Gap
Carrie Lukas, Managing Director of the Independent Women's Forum, argues that the pay gap between men and women isn't due to discrimination.
Blog
Education Department Financial Aid Rules Backfire, Harming Students
The Education Department tried to restrict the use of financial aid by for-profit colleges by barring them from getting more than 90 percent of their…
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