U.S. policymakers must act now to add high-skilled immigrant workers to the American labor force--or risk falling behind in the global economy.

In light of the academic challenge to the notion of competitiveness, AEI has gathered experts to research the value of the concept of competitiveness in high-skilled immigration.

At this two-day conference, scholars from across the country and around the world will explore the value of high-skilled immigration in a globalized labor market.

What’s important now is not to let what happened to Fishtown be ignored. For whatever reasons, the culture that used to characterize working-class America — indeed, that made working-class America the spine of America’s civic culture — has come apart. Recognizing that this has happened is the indispensable first step in figuring out what to do next.

Minimum wage laws do harm in the short run and in the long run. People acquire lots of valuable human capital in their first jobs. The longer those first jobs are pushed out of reach, the longer it takes low-skill workers to develop crucial capacities that can put them on a promising career path.

In January of this year, the number of manufacturing jobs increased by 50,000. Yet this vibrant sector is being held back—and not by imports.