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Maxford Nelsen
Director of Labor Policy
Maxford Nelsen is the Freedom Foundation’s Director of Labor Policy.
In this capacity, Max regularly testifies on labor issues before local governments and the state legislature. Max's research has formed the basis of several briefs submitted to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Max's work has been published in local newspapers around the country and in national outlets like the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, The Hill, National Review and the American Spectator. His work on labor policy issues has been featured in media outlets like the New York Times, Fox News and PBS News Hour. He is a frequent guest on local radio stations like 770 KTTH and 570 KVI.
From 2019-21, Max was a presidential appointee to the Federal Service Impasses Panel within the Federal Labor Relations Authority, which resolves contract negotiation disputes between federal agencies and labor unions.
Prior to joining the Freedom Foundation in 2013, Max worked for WashingtonVotes.org and the Washington Policy Center, and interned with the Heritage Foundation.
Max holds a labor relations certificate from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and graduated magna cum laude from Whitworth University with a bachelor's degree in political science. A Washington native, he lives in Olympia with his wife and sons.
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Government unions have resurrected legislation in Olympia designed to prevent the Freedom Foundation from communicating with public employees about their …
Public school employee union membership in Washington drops
Membership in the second-largest union representing public school employees in Washington state has declined 11.2 percent since the U.S. Supreme …
Caregiver Alleges Deceptive SEIU 775 Email was Unfair Labor Practice
The Freedom Foundation has filed an unfair labor practice complaint against SEIU 775 on behalf of a home caregiver who received a deceptive email from the union trying to trick her into signing a nearly irrevocable union membership agreement online.
The unionization of Washington’s assistant attorneys general is everything that’s wrong with government unions
The Washington State Legislature’s passage of SB 5297 and the subsequent unionization of the state’s assistant attorneys general is a case study in what’s wrong with government unions. It’s hard to conclude that SB 5297 was anything other than a purely political move to increase union dues collection.
Second campaign finance complaint filed against AFSCME political fund
The Freedom Foundation has filed a second complaint with the Washington Public Disclosure Commission against the “Special Account” operated by AFSCME headquarters in Washington, D.C. for failure to disclose millions of dollars in political contributions.
Washington Supreme Court rules Freedom Foundation can access public employee lists
In a long-awaited decision, the Washington State Supreme Court today ruled 5-4 in favor of the Freedom Foundation, holding that public employees’ names and dates of birth are subject to disclosure under the state Public Records Act.
Washington Federation of State Employees discloses big membership decline
Federal filing shows the Washington Federation of State Employees experienced a 27% decline in membership and an 12% decline in revenue in the year following the U.S. Supreme Court’s June 2018 decision in Janus v. AFSCME.
AFT Annual Report Discloses Post-Janus Membership Decline
A federal disclosure filed this week revealed the American Federation of Teachers has experienced a 4.3% decline in the number of its financial supporters since the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2018 decision in Janus v. AFSCME.
SEIU 775 To Pay Back Millions of Dollars in Dues Taken Illegally from Home Care Workers
This week, SEIU 775 agreed to pay $3.25 million to settle a class-action lawsuit in federal court brought by individual provider home care aides who had union dues deducted from their wages without their consent.
Center for Medicaid Services warns states to stop union dues skimming from Medicaid
Today, the federal Center Medicaid Services took another step towards stopping states from illegally deducting union dues from payments to home caregivers serving Medicaid-eligible clients.
