Occupational Licensing in Alabama

Ensuring Economic Liberty for All Alabama Workers

What is Occupational Licensing?

Occupational licensing is a permit issued by the government that allows someone to work in a particular field. In Alabama, nearly one in five workers must now get an occupational license before they can legally do their job. But many of these licenses are too strict, and they don’t even improve service quality or protect the public from actual harm.

An occupational or professional license is a permit issued by the government that lets someone work in a particular field. In Alabama, almost one out of every five workers must now get an occupational license before they can legally do their jobs. But many licenses don’t even improve service quality or protect the public from actual harm.

Licenses Create Barriers to Working in Alabama

Occupational licenses often impose high barriers to entry. That makes it much harder for people to find work or to start a new business. According to the Institute for Justice’s report, License to Work, the average license in Alabama for low- and moderate-income jobs takes 154 days of education and experience. And those required classes can be very expensive.

For instance, cosmetology is one of the state’s most popular licenses. In Alabama, it takes at least 1,500 hours of classes to get a license in cosmetology. On average, a cosmetology program in Alabama costs $14,437, while the average student takes out $8,578 in federal student loans. But despite such a hefty investment, many cosmetologists barely earn enough to get by: Half of Alabama’s cosmetologists make less than $20,900 a year.

All told, the state’s licensing requirements come with heavy costs. A separate study by IJ, At What Cost?, estimated that occupational licensing in Alabama costs the state’s economy $1.88 billion each year and leads to nearly 21,000 fewer jobs.

The Institute for Justice’s Fight Against Strict Licensing Laws in Alabama

The Institute for Justice is dedicated to protecting economic liberty in Alabama and beyond. We are actively fighting against Alabama’s strict occupational licensing laws, which are too burdensome and can prevent people from getting the jobs they want.

To better foster economic liberty, the Institute for Justice has filed multiple lawsuits against strict occupational licensing laws in Alabama. On behalf of Shelia Champion, IJ challenged an Alabama law that made it illegal for anyone to sell a casket without a funeral director’s license.

Just one month after the lawsuit was filed, the Alabama legislature enacted a reform to let Shelia and other entrepreneurs sell caskets to the public.

IJ also challenged a law that gave dentists a monopoly over teeth-cleaning services. Anyone who wanted to whiten teeth without a license in dentistry could risk a year in jail and heavy fines. Unfortunately, the Alabama Supreme Court upheld the monopoly in 2015.

Can You Get a License to Work with a Criminal Record in Alabama?

Unfortunately, many licensing boards can deny licenses to anyone who has been convicted of any felony, no matter how long ago it occurred or how irrelevant it is to the license sought. For those reasons, Alabama received an F in the Institute for Justice’s Barred from Working report.

How You Can Help

If you are an Alabama resident and you want to help fight against these unfair and unnecessary licensing laws, there are a few ways you can get involved. You can donate to the Institute for Justice, sign up for our email updates, and share our message with your network. Together, we can make sure that all Alabama workers have the economic liberty they deserve.