Labor & Economic News Blog


Tuesday, July 30, 2013

In Climbing Income Ladder, Location Matters

In Climbing Income Ladder, Location Matters
This geography appears to play a major role in making Atlanta one of the metropolitan areas where it is most difficult for lower-income households to rise into the middle class and beyond, according to a new study that other researchers are calling the most detailed portrait yet of income mobility in the United States. The study — based on millions of anonymous earnings records and being released this week by a team of top academic economists — is the first with enough data to compare upward mobility across metropolitan areas. 

 

Possible BART Strike Nears as Contract Negotiations Stall

Possible BART Strike Nears as Contract Negotiations Stall
The second deadline for a contract between BART and its unions is this coming Sunday, but the two sides still have a long way to go if they want to prevent another strike. The unions have reportedly stuck with their salary offer from before the strike -- a 20.1 percent raise over three years -- while BART issued a statement arguing that would mean an 18 percent fare hike for riders.

 

Monday, July 22, 2013

With Filibuster Deal, NLRB Could Soon Return To Full Force

With Filibuster Deal, NLRB Could Soon Return To Full Force
   The National Labor Relations Board building in downtown Washington.
Since the 1930s, the National Labor Relations Board has served as the arbiter for squabbles between management and unions, or workers who wanted to join a union. In recent years, the board itself has become a battleground, but the agency could soon be fully staffed for the first time in a decade.

 

As Cambodian Factories Expand, Conditions Are Criticized

As Cambodian Factories Expand, Conditions Are Criticized
A new report says the industry's rapid growth is partly to blame for worsening working conditions. The U.N. report comes just months after a building collapse in Bangladesh killed more than 1,000 garment factory workers.

 

How Detroit came to betray its retirees

How Detroit came to betray its retirees
Detroit’s pensioners are right. The city’s financial problems aren’t their fault, nor is the city’s deep budget hole caused by the checks it issues to retirees, most of whom get about $1,600 a month. But it is true that the funds are not generating enough income to keep pace with the projected number of retirees and structural costs of the system over the next 30 years.

 

Unions rally federal workers to fight furlough

Unions rally federal workers to fight furlough
The little-known Merit Systems Protection Board is flooded with appeals from federal workers as unions mount a new attack on the Obama administration’s decision to furlough workers.

 

Detroit's City Retirees Worry Pensions Won't Be Paid

Detroit's City Retirees Worry Pensions Won't Be Paid
Detroit's City Retirees Worry Pensions Won't Be Paid. But first to the largest city bankruptcy in U.S. history and the battle that is just beginning in Detroit.

 

Friday, July 19, 2013

Retail jobs surge in California despite so-so sales

Retail jobs surge in California despite so-so sales
Employers in California’s retail trade industry seemed optimistic in June, adding 7,900 jobs despite lackluster sales throughout the...

 

California Health Exchanges: Anthem spurns state exchange for small firms

Anthem spurns state exchange for small firms
Health insurance giant Anthem Blue Cross won't participate in the state's new market for small employers, a move that could deal a blow to California's new exchange.

 

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Unemployment set to remain high in OECD countries through 2014

Unemployment set to remain high in OECD countries through 2014
The Employment Outlook 2013 says thatjobless rates will fall only slightly over the next 18 months, from 8.0% in May 2013 to 7.8% at the end

 

Joblessness to Keep Rising, O.E.C.D. Forecasts

Joblessness to Keep Rising, O.E.C.D. Forecasts
Young people and the low-skilled will continue to be affected the most, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

 

Detroit Goes Bankrupt, the Largest City to Do So in U.S.

Detroit Goes Bankrupt, the Largest City to Do So in U.S.
The decision by the city, the cradle of America’s automobile industry and once the nation’s fourth-most populous, also marks the largest municipal bankruptcy filing in American history in terms of debt.

 

American Eagle pilots reject idea of lower pay scale for new

American Eagle pilots reject idea of lower pay scale for new ...
Leaders of American Eagle’s pilot union said Monday they won’t even consider a contract proposal that would let the airline set up lower rates of pay and benefits for newly hired pilots. The decision came the same day the new leadership at parent American Airlines Inc. announced a new executive team that will manage American Eagle, as well as other executives in the operations and finance areas.

 

Middle class still left behind in U.S. economic recovery, data show

Middle class still left behind in U.S. economic recovery, data show

Improving housing market, rising stock prices have done little to boost pay of the typical American worker.

 

In Vietnamese salons, nails, polish and unvarnished opinions

In Vietnamese salons, nails, polish and unvarnished opinions
Vietnamese manicurists exchange gossip in their native language about customers, children and romance during long days at nail salons.

 

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Building a Foundation of Fairness: 75 Years of the Federal Minimum ...

Building a Foundation of Fairness: 75 Years of the Federal Minimum ...
Full Committee Hearing - Building a Foundation of Fairness: 75 Years of the Federal Minimum Wage

 

Berkeley's Proposed Minimum Wage Hike Sparks Conflict

Berkeley's Proposed Minimum Wage Hike Sparks Conflict
Some restaurant owners want tipped employees to be exempted from the plan to raise the minimum wage to $10.55 an hour citywide.

 

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

McDonald's budget tool implies need for two jobs

McDonald's budget tool implies need for two jobs
McDonald's has launched a website devoted to financial advice and tips for its employees called Practical Money Skills for Life, and in the process possibly signaled the fast-food giant isn't paying employees a decent wage. 

 

Friday, July 12, 2013

Innovating American Manufacturing: New Policies for a Stronger Economic Future

Innovating American Manufacturing: New Policies for a Stronger Economic Future
On July 10, Governance Studies at Brookings hosted a half-day conference focused on manufacturing and which policy ideas and reforms could best benefit U.S. industry and innovation in the sector. Panels examined recent shifts in the manufacturing sector, initiatives required to promote further innovation and the significance of workplace education. 

 

The Need for Good Research on Pension Reform

The Need for Good Research on Pension Reform
A careful analysis of the effects of a particular pension reform on benefits provided to public employees and costs incurred by taxpayers would entail detailed calculations under a range of possible assumptions. The level of benefits and their costs to taxpayers depend on many factors, including when employees retire, how long they worked, how long they live after retirement, and the investment returns on pension funds.

 

Four Years Into the Recovery and We’re Just a Fifth of the Way Out of the Hole Left by the Great Recession

Four Years Into the Recovery and We’re Just a Fifth of the Way Out of the Hole Left by the Great Recession
The June 2013 employment report, released July 5th by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, marked four years since the official start of the recovery in June 2009 with stronger job growth than we have been seeing.

 

Gender Gaps Appear in Employment Recovery

Gender Gaps Appear in Employment Recovery
The charts accompanying this article compare job growth or shrinkage since January 2008, when the overall economy reached an employment

 

BART's Lead Negotiator Has a History of Illegal Behavior

BART's Lead Negotiator Has a History of Illegal Behavior
The transit agency has sought to portray its workers as being unreasonable, but it hired a private negotiator that has a record of violating federal...

 

D.C. Council Passes Wage Bill Despite Wal-Mart's Threats ...

D.C. Council Passes Wage Bill Despite Wal-Mart's Threats ...
A bill would require Wal-Mart to pay a starting wage that is several dollars above the city's minimum.

 

Tuesday, July 02, 2013

BART Strike: Another Instance of Media Portraying Workers as ...

BART Strike: Another Instance of Media Portraying Workers as ...
Riders walk from a Muni bus near the 24th Street Mission Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) station in San Francisco

 

BART on Strike: Live Blog

BART on Strike: Live Blog | KQED News Fix
KQED BART Strike Updates. Info on commute and strike

 

What's Behind the BART Strike? | Mother Jones

What's Behind the BART Strike? | Mother Jones
The BART strike alone has been crippling to the Bay Area, but it's not the only one. City of Oakland employees joined BART workers on the...

 

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