An Initial Assessment of Antitrust and Labor Policy Under the Biden Administration: A New Foundation for Even Bolder Action
Hi Everyone,
Commonweal magazine has published a new op-ed I wrote where I examine and assess the Biden Administration's fundamental shift in antitrust enforcement and its effect on empowering workers and labor organizations.
Congress initially designed the antitrust laws to protect labor organizing activity and police dominant corporations - but practically since their enactment, the antitrust laws have been repeatedly used by public enforcers and corporations against labor. In other words, rather than be supportive of labor’s efforts to balance the power of dominant corporations, the antitrust laws were used as a legal bludgeon to hinder unionization and solidarity between workers.
This has changed since President Biden entered the Oval Office. In my article, I explain the rocky history between labor and antitrust enforcement. I also detail some of the notable antitrust enforcement action actions under the Biden Administration - specifically by the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission - and explain how they, as Congress intended, empower rather than attack labor as well as form the foundation for even broader labor reforms.
The article can be read here.
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