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Politics and Policy

Companies That Receive State Subsidies Are More Likely to Break Workplace Laws‌

In a new study, Yale SOM’s Aneesh Raghunandan finds that state officials are then less likely to penalize companies that receive subsidies for corporate misconduct—and their leniency seems to encourage firms to ignore regulations.

A "Welcome to Washington" sign along a highway
  • Can We Talk about Politics at Work?

    We asked Heidi Brooks, who studies organizational behavior and pioneered the course Everyday Leadership, for her advice on how organizations can respond positively to strong opinions and emotions around political issues—both during election season and after the votes have been cast.

    An illustration of people reading newspapers with election news.
  • Video: Why You Should Care about Antitrust

    We asked Prof. Fiona Scott Morton, former chief economist for the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division and the founder of the Thurman Arnold Project at Yale, to explain why antitrust violations are bad for consumers and how the government can respond.

    An illustration of a man in top hat stealing coins from birds
  • On COVID-19 Vaccines, Big Pharma Knows to Just Say ‘No’

    In the face of pressure from President Donald Trump, nine major pharmaceutical companies have signed a pledge to complete testing before submitting vaccines for approval. Yale's Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and Dr. Albert Ko write that the drugmakers’ caution may help provide badly needed confidence in the eventual vaccine.

    Moncef Slaoui, lead scientist on Operation Warp Speed, with President Trump and Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar at a press conference on vaccine development in May 2020. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images.
  • What Kamala Harris’s Nomination Means for Women’s Equality

    If Joe Biden is elected this November, Kamala Harris would be the first woman and the first person of color to serve as vice president. We asked Prof. Oriane Georgeac, who studies perceptions of diversity, if Harris’s nomination heralds an acceleration of progress for women generally.

    Kamala Harris campaigning in Iowa in February 2019. Photo: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty Images.
  • Rethinking Police Organizations

    Prof. Rodrigo Canales has spent his career investigating how to transform the institutions that shape our lives. Effective police reform, he says, begins with shifting the focus from deterring crime to helping the whole community feel safe.

    Mexican police officers greeting a family
  • How Cash Bail Creates a Two-Tiered System of Justice

    Kaitlin Koga ’17, chief of staff for the Bail Project, argues for an alternative to bail that she believes would deliver more equitable justice and improve public safety.

    A bail bonds storefront in New York City
  • Please Mr. Postman

    Some have defended cutbacks to the United States Postal Service, weeks ahead of the election, by citing the USPS’s financial struggles. But the postal service was created to provide a public service, writes Yale SOM’s Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, not to turn a profit.

    A USPS worker wearing a mask puts envelopes in a mailbox while driving past
  • Will COVID-19 Worsen Inequality in the United States?

    The path of the pandemic has been shaped by inequality, with poor and minority workers experiencing greater exposure to infection and fewer health protections. Has the policy response helped ease these inequities—or made them worse?

    Outdoor service at a restaurant in New York City on July 30, 2020.
  • Liquidity Injections May Have Driven the Stock Market Recovery

    Why did the stock market recover as the economy suffered? Yale SOM’s Shyam Sunder points to the hundreds of billions of dollars injected into the economy by the Federal Reserve and other central banks.

    An illustration of Fed chair Jerome Powell speaking on a laptop in front of a stock chart
  • To Stop Violent Policing, Build Effective Police Organizations

    For the last three years, Yale SOM's Rodrigo Canales has led a project studying police forces in Mexico and testing approaches to building more effective and trusted departments.

    Police officers talking with citizens in Mexico