Policy Developments

In honor of Labor Day 2026, and to adhere to our mission of democratizing data, the Cornell ILR Buffalo Co-Lab and CAROW have developed a county-level geography of labor union membership for the United States from a non-conventional data source: the MRI-Simmons LOCAL consumer survey.

The new Medicaid HR1 work rules have created concerns for thousands of people with disabilities who rely on Medicaid to work, live in the community and manage complex health needs.

As the City of Ithaca debates whether to consider adopting just cause protections, Ian Greer, Director of the ILR Ithaca Co-Lab at Cornell’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations, provides facts and data to answer commonly asked questions about them.

App workers receive minimal benefits and protection. Termination decisions are made by algorithms, which are prone to error and discriminatory customer abuse. ILR Assistant Professor Andrew Wolf describes how policies that provide just cause protections for app-based workers can address this problem.

Work requirements tied to receiving public benefits have a long history in the U.S. that is based on discriminatory ideas of deservedness. ILR researchers Anne Marie Brady and Devin Wiggs break down the flawed origins of work requirements, which have recently been expanded by federal law.

Cornell ILR School's Senior Labor Market Advisor, Erica Groshen, answers questions on the proposed rule to reclassify some federal positions as Schedule Policy/Career. The 30-day public comment period is open until May 23, 2025.

On December 3rd, 2024, the United States Department of Labor proposed a new rule to end the 14c waiver program for people with disabilities. The Yang-Tan Institute's Ellice Switzer responds to a Q&A on the new proposed rule.