Posts tagged health insurance
A giant barrier to being self-employed is falling, state by state
April 13, 2026 // As more states pass permanent reforms, millions of independent contractors could gain access to benefits they’ve never enjoyed. But states aren’t the only ones that can act. Congress could also amend federal law so that companies may offer benefits without facing liability. Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana) and Rep. Kevin Kiley (I-California) have introduced bills to that effect in their respective chambers. They deserve the support of the full Congress and the White House in giving millions more workers long-term financial security along with the flexibility that self-employment provides. The portable benefits revolution can’t sweep the nation fast enough.
Wisconsin Reined in Public Sector Unions. Now Those Reforms Are in Jeopardy.
April 12, 2026 // According to a recent analysis by the Center for Economic Policy and Research (CEPR), Wisconsin has seen the sharpest decline in union membership rates of any state in the country over the past 40 years. While the number of union members has declined nationwide in recent decades as America has transitioned to a more service-based economy, Wisconsin's decrease has been particularly notable, especially since it historically had been one of America's most unionized states. Act 10 played a large role in the drop. Wisconsin's public sector union membership rates saw "by far" the largest decline—at close to 29 percent—of any state, according to CEPR's report. "Wisconsin's steepest losses," the report notes, "coincided with the 2011 passage of Wisconsin Act 10."
Maryland lawmakers pass bill granting some college professors union rights
April 12, 2026 // The unions would be under the American Federation of Teachers, which represents K-12 educators, higher education faculty and staff, state employees, nurses and health care professionals. The Maryland chapter represents over 18,000 workers. Kenya Campbell, president of AFT Maryland, said she expects Moore to sign the bill this year but said the work isn’t over. “We’re going to continue to fight until all faculty across the state of Maryland have the right to collectively bargain,” she said. The bill has advanced despite opposition from the University System of Maryland, the parent organization overseeing most of the public universities in the state.
The fight continues: a look at union efforts in Washington state
April 10, 2026 // A Washington state cleaning company that receives hundreds of thousands in taxpayer dollars, is in negotiations with its unionized workers over the employees’ contract.
UC-wide strike averted after tentative agreement with UAW
March 16, 2026 // A UC systemwide strike will likely be averted after UAW and the University of California reached a tentative agreement Friday after seven months of negotiations. UAW 4811, the union that represents 48,000 student employees, postdocs and academic researchers across the UC system, announced the tentative agreement in an email Friday night.
USL season opens with silent players protest over CBA deadlock
March 10, 2026 // The USL Championship season kicked off Friday with Louisville City FC's 2-1 win at Lexington SC, but the match began with a silent protest. Following the opening whistle, players from both sides stood motionless for one minute to highlight stalled CBA negotiations between the league and the USL Players Association (USLPA).
You paid $181 million for union bosses to negotiate against you in 2024, but the Trump administration is doing something about it
February 19, 2026 // Even the “usual” topics of labor-relations negotiations are not part of federal bargaining. As Molly Conway, who served as Chief of Staff to the Department of Labor in the first Trump administration, wrote in a primer for the Institute for the American Worker: Management rights and any matters “specifically provided for by Federal statute” are not bargainable. This includes pay, health insurance, retirement, and certain workplace insurance (e.g., workers’ compensation, unemployment insurance), among others. [citations omitted]
WATCH: I4AW’s Jonathan Wolfson Testifies Again: Portable Benefits Bill Considered in Kansas House of Representatives
February 11, 2026 // Visiting Fellow Jonathan Wolfson testified before the Kansas House of Representatives to offer expert analysis on HB 2602, a state bill that would allow businesses that hire independent workers to pay for benefits like retirement accounts or insurance without risking being punished by the government for "misclassifying" the freelancer as an independent worker instead of an employee.
Why SAG-AFTRA’s 2026 Contract Talks Matter for Los Angeles and the Business of Hollywood
January 29, 2026 // Artificial intelligence looms as perhaps the most complex issue on the table. Advances in voice replication, digital doubles and performance synthesis have raised concerns that actors’ likenesses could be reused without meaningful consent or compensation. Astin characterized AI as an immediate labor issue rather than a speculative one, particularly in a market like Los Angeles, where background performers, day players and voice actors form a large part of the workforce.
Some Post-Gazette workers call for new union leadership
January 25, 2026 // The division comes roughly three weeks after the paper’s publisher, Block Communications Inc., announced the decision to shutter the paper in May. It followed failed attempts to convince the U.S. Supreme Court to halt a lower court order that required the company to make changes to its health insurance coverage for union workers.