Republican members of Congress say President Joe Biden’s administration is waging war on independent contractors. Democrats counter that they are trying to ensure workers are not exploited and businesses compete on a level playing field. Kim Kavin, a freelance writer from New Jersey, said this is not a partisan issue. “Our members have voted for…

PARIS—Clashes erupted in Paris next to a Left Bank brasserie favored by French President Emmanuel Macron as protesters torched garbage cans and smashed two banks during the eleventh day of nationwide demonstrations against pension reform. The bistro La Rotonde, whose awning was set alight as protesters threw bottles and paint at police, is known in…

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed a package of bills on Friday that repeal a 2012 “right-to-work” law that made paying dues to unions optional at unionized workplaces. The new package of measures mean workers employed at unionized workplaces can no longer opt out of paying union dues and fees. The 2012 “right-to-work” law, which had…

The coordinated strike action by nurses and ambulance workers next month will mark a “step change” in the labour dispute in Britain’s National Health Service (NHS), a senior health service leader has warned. The UK is expected to see the biggest-ever strike action within the NHS on Feb. 6, when ambulance staff and nurses plan…

Southwest Airlines pilots have set a “historic” strike-authorization vote, following a lack of progress in contract negotiations and a massive operational meltdown. In a Jan. 18 announcement, the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association (SWAPA) said a vote has been set “beginning on May 1, and will ultimately give pilots the ability to strike.” The union, which represents…

Railroad workers and their union leaders have criticized President Joe Biden’s call for Congress to block a planned strike from going ahead amid concerns over the U.S. economy. Biden warned on Monday that a rail shutdown would “devastate” the economy, while up to 765,000 Americans—many union workers themselves—”could be put out of work in the…

Commentary With the Nov. 8 election already one week ago, we already are conditioned to accept that some final results will not be known until Dec. 16, five weeks later. Counting proceeds at a crawl in counties up and down the state, and those among us with housebroken political sentiments are expected to be impressed…

Commentary Democratic gubernatorial nominee Josh Shapiro’s overflowing campaign coffers underscore the importance of Pennsylvania to national politics—and the influence of government unions in elections. With four weeks remaining until the mid-term elections, Shapiro reported raising a whopping $25.4 million in his latest campaign-finance report, bringing his total to a record $50.9 million since the beginning…

The threat of a U.S. freight rail strike remains possible, as some rail unions have yet to ratify last week’s tentative deal reached by their leadership, with some local members already rejecting the terms. If just one of the unions decides to reject the brokered deal, the agreement would collapse and strikes may begin. The…

Commentary There is only one answer to this question: Public sector unions. Anyone who argues otherwise is either misinformed or has a personal or professional motivation to delude themselves and others. Before offering evidence of the financial power of public sector unions, consider the power these unions wield that is not explicitly financial. These unions…