Michael H. Belzer

Michael H. Belzer is a Professor of Economics at Wayne State University's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, specializing in trucking industry economics and labor relations. He teaches principles of macroeconomics and graduate courses in industrial organization, labor economics, and transportation economics. Belzer has served on multiple Transportation Research Board committees for over 12 years and currently serves on the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health National Occupational Research Agenda Sector Council for Transportation, Warehousing and Utilities.

• A.B., College of Arts and Sciences, Cornell University, 1972
• M.S., Graduate School, Cornell University, 1990
• Ph.D., Graduate School, Cornell University, 1993

Belzer's research focuses on trucking industry issues, industrial and labor relations, driver occupational safety and health, and freight transportation regulation. He is internationally recognized as an expert on trucking deregulation impacts, having authored the seminal work 'Sweatshops on Wheels: Winners and Losers in Trucking Deregulation' (Oxford University Press, 2000). His work consistently examines how driver compensation structures directly impact safety outcomes, advocating for 'safe rates' policies that remove compensation from competition in the trucking industry. His research spans economic analysis of tolling systems, driver health issues, and labor relations in both U.S. and Chinese trucking industries.

His recent publications demonstrate a clear trend toward examining the relationship between driver compensation, working conditions, and safety outcomes. The research spans public health (hypertension, obesity), transportation safety (crash analysis, fatigue), and economic policy (tolling, deregulation). His work increasingly incorporates cross-national comparisons, particularly with China, where he collaborates with Dr. Jinyun Liu on industrial relations experiments.

• $2.5 million in grant and contract funding over academic career
• Testified before U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Small Business (2012)
• Testified to Australian Parliament supporting SafeRates legislation (2011)
• Completed numerous projects for Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and Volpe Center

Belzer has led significant research initiatives including the 'Truck Crashes and Work-Related Factors Associated with Drivers and Motor Carriers' (2009) and 'Impact of Compensation Practices on Number of Citations & Recordable Accidents Incurred' (2003). Through his organization Great Lakes Gateway, he's developing the Great Lakes Global Freight Gateway initiative to transform Southeast Michigan into a global freight transportation hub. His consulting firm, Sound Science Inc., works on trucking safety issues and labor misclassification, serving as an expert witness in trucking labor lawsuits. Belzer also collaborates with Chinese researchers on trucking industry industrial relations, examining how destructive competition in China's trucking sector affects driver safety and working conditions.