Sean Higgins is a research fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute specializing in labor and employment issues. As journalist, he covered the intersection of politics and economics for two decades, having been senior writer for the Washington Examiner, Washington correspondent for Investor’s Business Daily and a contributor to publications like Reason and National Review Online.”
Authored by Sean Higgins
News
Labor-supported bill would protect unions, force workers into unions they never voted for
Twenty Republican House members joined their Democratic colleagues in passing the Faster Labor Contracts Act last night. The bill would fast-track union negotiations, allowing arbitration…
Economy added 172,000 jobs in May, better than expected report: CEI analysis
The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ jobs report for May shows an unexpected increase of 172,000 jobs, indicating an economy that has begun to…
Misnamed ‘Railway Safety Act’ advances in House
The misleadingly named Railway Safety Act pushed by the Trump administration was inserted in the Build America 250 Act today and passed out of the House…
Blog
The Faster Labor Contracts Act would force workers into unions they never voted for
- By: Sean Higgins
Unions and their allies in Congress say that the Faster Labor Contracts Act is needed to prevent businesses from endlessly delaying workers’ efforts…
State legislatures targeting noncompete clauses
- By: Sean Higgins
At least 15 states have enacted significant restrictions on noncompete agreements, ranging from minimum income thresholds to outright bans. Eight states have passed restrictions…
DOL gets flexible on overtime
- By: Sean Higgins
The Department of Labor (DOL) will formally reverse a Biden-era rule that expanded the number of workers eligible for overtime on Friday. Courts had…
Op-Eds/Articles
DC Journal
Point: AI Won’t Take Our Jobs Away
- By: Sean Higgins
For an alternate viewpoint, see “Counterpoint: Trump’s Extreme Anti-Labor Policies Could Determine the Effect of AI on Labor.” Read enough headlines about artificial intelligence and…
National Review
Josh Hawley, friend of a friend of the working man
- By: Sean Higgins
His mistake is thinking that the way to win over working-class voters is by supporting policies favored by union leaders. Missouri Senator Josh Hawley is the…
National Review
The Teamsters’ Imaginary Strike against Amazon
- By: Sean Higgins
There was a historic strike by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters workers at Amazon facilities over the Christmas holiday, yet it didn’t appear to slow Amazon’s…
Studies
The Forgotten History of the Wagner Act
- By: Sean Higgins
Introduction President Joe Biden on April 26, 2021, announced the creation of a special Task Force on Worker Organizing and Empowerment. The purpose of the…
The Protect the Right to Organize Act Empowers Unions at Workers’ Expense
- By: Sean Higgins
View the Full Document as PDF The Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act is touted by its supporters as advancing the rights…
Citations
Capitol Research Center
American Compass vs AFL-CIO battle isn’t what it appears to be
- By: Sean Higgins
Capitol Research Center cited CEI’s expert on Labor & Employment The language of the title is notable, and evidence of where the Compass faction…
Minimum-wage hikes affecting hourly workers in 19 states
- By: Sean Higgins
The Washington Times cited CEI’s expert on labor’s minimum wage Sean Higgins, an analyst at the libertarian Competitive Enterprise Institute, said U.S. workers earn…
The Washington Times
Record-high 203 million people shopped over Thanksgiving weekend, says National Retail Federation
- By: Sean Higgins
The Washington Times cited CEI’s expert on The Federal Bureau of Economic Analysis “The good news is that inflation hasn’t deterred people that much,” said…
Regulatory Comments
Competitive Enterprise Institute Letter Supporting OPM’s Proposed Rule on Improving Performance, Accountability, and Responsiveness in the Civil Service
- By: Sean Higgins
Competitive Enterprise Institute Letter in Support of OPM proposed rule “Improving Performance, Accountability and Responsiveness in the Civil Service” On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise…
Competitive Enterprise Institute Letter in Support of DOT Request to Reduce Regulatory Burden
- By: Sean Higgins
On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), I respectfully submit the following comments in response to the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) request for information,…
CEI Letter Opposing the Department of Labor’s Proposed Changes to the Davis-Bacon Act
- By: Sean Higgins
Via Regulations.Gov Hon. Marty Walsh Secretary of Labor United States Department of Labor 200 Constitution Ave NW Washington, DC 20210 Updating the Davis-Bacon and Related…
Podcast Episodes
Going into Labor with Sean Higgins
- By: Sean Higgins
This week we talk about the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s legal fate, rising economic might in India, terrible federal policy on sugar, and how the...