Posts tagged White House
Op-ed– MY TURN: Washington’s one-size labor law doesn’t fit Alaska
July 9, 2026 // Forced arbitration doesn’t resolve disputes. It delays them and adds uncertainty to project timelines that are already difficult to manage. For the major energy and infrastructure projects Alaska is now positioned to advance, that uncertainty isn’t just an inconvenience. It could be catastrophic. America needs bold steps toward a more robust energy future, and shortsighted federal mandates stand in the way of that.
Federal employees face reality of Schedule Policy/Career
July 8, 2026 // Trump administration officials have said the creation of Schedule Policy/Career aims to improve employee accountability and ensure the federal workforce is carrying out the president’s policy agenda. A senior administration official last month told reporters, “As long as employees are performing their job duties in a competent, professional manner,” then reclassified federal employees “have nothing to be afraid of.”
The Texas Case That Could Bring Down the NLRB
June 13, 2026 // That’s the reality of a May decision by a U.S. district court in Fort Worth in the case Aunt Bertha v. National Labor Relations Board. The court ruled that the NLRB – the main government agency overseeing union organizing and collective bargaining in the private sector – is unconstitutional on multiple counts. This case seems destined to head to the Supreme Court, and if it does, Congress may have to rewrite federal labor law to meet workers’ needs in the 21st century.
Op-ed: Trump needs a pro-worker head of Labor Department — not a union lapdog
June 11, 2026 // The right choice for labor secretary is the one right under President Donald Trump’s nose. That’s Keith Sonderling, who is now the acting labor secretary. He is pro-right to work. He will fight against the trial lawyers and the militant union bosses who have been hostile to Trump, even as rank-and-file union workers embrace Trump’s America First agenda. Sonderling is right that “Trump is the greatest president for American workers, including union workers,” in history. Not too many union leaders believe that, which is why upwards of 90% of their donations typically go to Democrats.
Trump formalizes move of career federal workers into ‘at will’ roles
June 6, 2026 // An executive order signed by Trump on Wednesday seeks to move those workers into the new class, saying they would be “exempted from the adverse action procedures that make removals for poor performance or misconduct so difficult.” “Consequently, employees with significant policy-making responsibilities can stay in their jobs for years even if they perform poorly, engage in misconduct, or are unwilling to advance Presidential policy across administrations, making their agencies less capable of delivering for the American people,” the White House wrote in a fact sheet describing those now in the schedule as having “at-will positions.”
Labor Department’s reworked joint employer rule restores common sense
April 23, 2026 // The Labor Department came out with a draft rework of its joint employer rule. CEI labor policy expert Sean Higgins points to some good fixes but underscores the need for Congress to reform the law instead of leaving decisions to regulators:
Unions heighten calls for a bigger federal pay boost next year
April 15, 2026 //
Trump taps veteran labor lawyer to fill out Republican NLRB majority
April 14, 2026 // Trump's appointees are expected to target a series of labor board policies favored by unions that have helped fuel a spike in union organizing in recent years. But board rules require three members to vote in favor of overruling existing precedent, and Murphy and Mayer said during confirmation proceedings that they would not break with that practice. Murphy and Mayer have already revived a rule adopted by the NLRB during Trump's first term that makes it more difficult to hold companies liable as the "joint employers" of contract and franchise workers, and relinquished jurisdiction over a case involving Elon Musk's SpaceX to a different federal labor agency.
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.
Op-ed: White House wrong to push Railway Safety Act
March 10, 2026 // “The legislation would mandate minimum two-member crews (one conductor, one engineer) on freight trains. There is no evidence that such a mandate would make trains any safer, but it would prohibit attempts to further automate them. Railroad companies have reduced crew sizes for decades while also reducing accident rates. The two-crew rule exists solely for the benefit of unions that represent railroad workers. If there is any form of transportation that should be on the leading edge of automation, it is trains, which have a natural safety edge because they don’t use public roads or the skies.”