The education BLOB--- that immovable jelly-like ball of teachers' and janitors' unions, the school board bureaucrats, PTAs, etc.---just keeps growing. As the number of students increased 96%, the number of administrative staff has increased 702%.... continue reading »

I blame teachers unions a lot for our failed education system. But they aren't the only ones responsible. In this week's syndicated column, I take on the education "Blob".

The Blob includes the teachers unions, but also janitors and principals unions, school boards, PTA bureaucrats, local politicians and so on... continue reading »

Public schools do a lousy job... and reformers who try to make improvements run up against the "BLOB." It's this Jabba-the-Hutt like thing that can barely be budged - the teachers' unions, janitors' unions, the school board bureaucrat, etc. The BLOB says: "We don't do that here. We have to requisition downtown. We got to get 4 or 5 people to sign off, the deputy director of curriculum has to say this is OK, etc."

The BLOB insists education needs more money, but as the chart shows, America has tripled spending, but math, reading and science scores haven't improved... continue reading »

Exciting things are happening in education suddenly. In some places, charter schools bucked the unions, and got results. Inner-city kids do well on benchmark tests. They are excited to learn! When I told fourth graders that school is boring, they yelled, "No, it's not!" Says one boy: "Reading is rockin' awesome!"... continue reading »

Unions hurt American workers, as I write in my syndicated column this week:

Unions say it's good that they protect American workers from arbitrary dismissal and make sure everyone is treated equally.

But it's not good.

Rules that "protect" government workers from arbitrary dismissal and require everyone be treated equally are bad for taxpayers and "customers" -- and even union workers themselves... continue reading »

A few things I heard at a rally of 10,000 union members in Philadelphia last month: Workers should have a "Second Bill of Rights"...people told me that everyone is entitled to a "living wage"... We (not our employers) own our jobs... "Slackers" should be helped rather than fired.

On our show this week, my guests and I discuss unions and what they really do for workers... continue reading »

Tonight on The O'Reilly Factor, Bill O'Reilly and I discuss the current strike by public school teachers in Chicago.

Researching the topic, I am amazed by the data... continue reading »

A few weeks ago, the Australian government raised minimum wage to A$15 an hour (about $15.30 USD). It's more than double the federal minimum wage in the United States... continue reading »

My column this week explains why government and unions don't improve working conditions. Wages are best determined by the market.

But without a minimum wage or union protection, wouldn't employers abuse workers? In a real free market, no, they can't. Because workers have choices. Employers have an incentive to maintain a good relationship with employees -- one that keeps them reasonably loyal -- because workers can quit and go work for a rival... continue reading »

A blog post in the Washington Post criticizes states like Michigan and Tennessee for supporting the spread of charter schools, because that diverts money from the government schools:continue reading »