David Madland is a senior fellow and the senior adviser to the American Worker Project at American Progress. He has been called “one of the nation’s wisest young scholars” by Washington Post columnist E.J. Dionne Jr.
Madland is the author of Re-Union: How Bold Labor Reforms Can Repair, Revitalize, and Reunite the United States(Cornell University Press, 2021) and Hollowed Out: Why the Economy Doesn’t Work without a Strong Middle Class(University of California Press, 2015). Mary Kay Henry, president of the Service Employees International Union, says, “David’s work is creating a North Star for how we increase workers’ power in the economy and democracy.”
He has appeared frequently on television shows, including “PBS NewsHour” and CNN’s “Crossfire”; been cited in such publications as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and The New Yorker; and been a guest on dozens of radio talk shows across the United States. He has testified before Congress on a number of occasions, as well as several state legislatures.
Madland writes frequently about the economy and American politics, especially the middle class, economic inequality, labor unions, retirement policy, and workplace standards such as the minimum wage. He worked on economic policy for former Rep. George Miller (D-CA) and has consulted for several labor unions. He is the co-author of Interest Groups in American Campaigns, and his dissertation about the decline of the U.S. pension system was honored as the best dissertation of the year by the Labor and Employment Relations Association.
Madland received his doctorate in government from Georgetown University and has a bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley. At American Progress, he previously served as the managing director for Economic Policy and the director of the American Worker Project.
David Madland explains how a proposed law in California, the FAST Recovery Act, would vastly improve fast-food workers' rights in the state by creating a sectoral council.
David Madland argues that lawmakers and the Biden administration prioritize labor law reforms in the American Jobs Plan given that strengthening unions and collective bargaining rights will be critical for the United States' long-term economic recovery.
A sectoral council is well-suited to address the fast-food industry’s unique challenges and improve working conditions.
Involving unions and worker groups in navigator programs would help more people understand and get the unemployment benefits they deserve.
To ensure that workers are afforded the dignity they deserve, state and local officials must act now to strengthen worker power in the workplace and beyond.
Maine policymakers can improve the state’s economy and democracy by enacting these 10 recommendations to build worker power.
David Madland reviews Michael J. Sandel's The Tyranny of Merit.
Policymakers can use prevailing wages to set strong compensation rates across industries and occupations, benefitting workers and taxpayers alike.
States and cities can set minimum compensation standards for private sector employees that reference prevailing wage and benefit rates.
Author David Madland explains the need to bring together representatives of workers, employers, and the public in order to foster coordinated problem-solving.
