Labor & Economic News Blog


Tuesday, December 16, 2014

Economic Recovery Spreads to the Middle Class

Economic Recovery Spreads to the Middle Class

Many economists are convinced that falling unemployment and increased hiring are finally about to start paying off in terms of wage gains for a broader swath of workers.

 

Odds are stacked against low-income Americans seeking a college degree

Odds are stacked against low-income Americans seeking a college degree

Odds are stacked against low-income Americans seeking a college degree PART 3 | When you live on the margins, even a small disruption can knock you out of school.

 

Millennials just aren’t that into working for the government

Millennials just aren’t that into working for the government

Millennials just aren’t that into working for the government Only 7 percent of federal workers are under the age of 30 — the lowest figure in nearly a decade

 

Monday, December 15, 2014

The devalued American: Working 2 jobs to hold on

The devalued American: Working 2 jobs to hold on

The devalued American: Working 2 jobs to hold on

The past three recessions sparked a chain reaction of layoffs and lower pay. The American economy has stopped delivering the broadly shared prosperity that the nation grew accustomed to after World War II. The explanation for why that is begins with the millions of middle-class jobs that vanished over the past 25 years, and with what happened to the men and women who once held those jobs.

 

Friday, December 12, 2014

Why the middle class is in trouble

Why the middle class is in trouble

LIFTOFF | PART 1: The middle class took America to the moon. Then something went horribly wrong.

 

The Vanishing Male Worker: How America Fell Behind

The Vanishing Male Worker: How America Fell Behind

The share of men aged 25 to 54 who are not working has more than tripled since the late 1960s.

 

Company stores trap Mexican farmworkers in cycle of debt

 

Wednesday, December 10, 2014

Deal reached to allow benefit cuts to pension plans

The measure, intended to save some of the most distressed pension plans, could affect millions of retired workers if the $1.01T spending bill is approved.

 

Bills’ Cheerleaders Lead Charge for Respect, and Wages

Bills’ Cheerleaders Lead Charge for Respect, and Wages

For humiliations, and for hundreds of hours of work and practices, Alyssa and her fellow cheerleaders on the Buffalo Jills received not a penny of wages.

 

On a Mexican mega-farm: 'They treated us like slaves'

On a Mexican mega-farm: 'They treated us like slaves' />


On a Mexican mega-farm: 'They treated us like slaves'
This account of conditions in the camp is based on interviews with 13 laborers who lived there that spring. The Times interviewed some in their home villages in Huasteca and others by phone. The paper also spoke to Mexican labor inspectors and Bioparques employees and visited the camp.

 

Monday, December 08, 2014

Mexico & the Americas Times investigation: Hardship on Mexico's farms, a bounty for U.S. tables

 

Friday, December 05, 2014

More Jobs and Higher Wages: Recovery Starts to Hit Home

More Jobs and Higher Wages: Recovery Starts to Hit Home
Employers added 321,000 jobs in November, echoing other positive economic data recently and far exceeding analysts’ expectations that payrolls would increase by 230,000.

 

Thursday, December 04, 2014

Congress could soon allow cuts in pension plans

Congress could soon allow cuts in pension plans

Hill lawmakers may permit benefit cuts in multi-employer pensions, a move unions and advocates oppose.

 

The sad state of benefits for new moms on the job

The sad state of benefits for new moms on the job

The sad state of benefits for new moms on the job Two-thirds of women work during their pregnancy, up from less than half in the 1960s, yet benefits haven’t caught up.

 

The poor used to have the most opportunity in America. Now the rich do.

The poor used to have the most opportunity in America. Now the rich do.

The poor used to have the most opportunity in America. Now the rich do. Surprise! Wage growth has collapsed for everyone but the top 1 percent the past few decades.

 

State Disinvestment in Higher Education Has Led to an Explosion of Student-Loan Debt

State Disinvestment in Higher Education Has Led to an Explosion of Student-Loan Debt
To address states’ devastating budget cuts to public colleges ushered in by the Great Recession, the Center for American Progress proposes a new funding mechanism to improve college affordability and decrease student reliance on federal loans.

 

Study Finds Violations of Wage Law in New York and California

Study Finds Violations of Wage Law in New York and California
The United States Labor Department says that a new study shows that between 3 and 6 percent of all workers in both states are paid less than the minimum wage.

 

From $7.47-an-Hour Job to Living-Wage Evangelist

From $7.47-an-Hour Job to Living-Wage Evangelist

Leading the latest one-day strike, Terrance Wise, who for years has had low-paying fast-food jobs, is at the forefront of a growing movement.

 

California's shrinking workforce has troubling implications

California's shrinking workforce has troubling implications
The proportion of working-age Californians who are employed or actively seeking employment -- known as the labor force participation rate -- is the smallest it has been since the 1970s.

 

Wednesday, December 03, 2014

Job growth slowing in California but incomes rising, Chapman says

Job growth slowing in California but incomes rising, Chapman says
California consumers are feeling good and earning more, even though job growth is slowing, according to a new economic forecast from Chapman University.

 

Study finds big racial disparity in effects of widening wealth gap

Study finds big racial disparity in effects of widening wealth gap

Income inequality matters for everyone, but it matters differently for different groups of people, conclude the authors of a new UC Berkeley study. Researchers linked greater gaps in wealth to more deaths among black Americans, but fewer deaths among white Americans.

 

Cal Refuses to Pay Berkeley Minimum Wage


The city's largest employer — UC Berkeley — says it's exempt from abiding by the new minimum wage of $10 an hour in Berkeley.

 

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