Most of city's subway shut down as workers protest pension cuts
Times (UK) Sep 4, 07 10:14 AM CDT
(Newser)
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A transit strike has shut down almost all of London's Underground subway system and has left commuters scrambling for alternate transportation. The Rail, Maritime and Transport union hopes to resolve a pension dispute today, the Times of London reports, but the city remains crippled, with service on 10 of 12 Tube lines suspended.
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New UN report says Americans more productive than peers
Associated Press Sep 3, 07 1:55 PM CDT
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Labor Day is a well-deserved rest for Americans, as a new UN report shows US laborers work longer, harder, and get more done than their counterparts worldwide. The average US worker produces the most wealth, raking in $63,885 yearly, followed by Irish laborers at $55,986. Only Norway beat the US in the amount of output generated hourly.
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Endorsements hurt more than help in key states, poll finds
Politico Aug 8, 07 7:15 PM CDT
(Newser)
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The backing of gay rights groups could turn swing-state voters against a candidate, new polls show. Politico reports that Florida, Ohio and Pennsylvania voters, by a large margin, consider the support of such groups reason to vote against rather than for a candidate; no one since JFK has been elected president without winning two of those states.
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In Chicago, the testy senators spar on Iraq and Pakistan
Newsday Aug 8, 07 5:40 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama delivered their sharpest attacks yet at each other's foreign policy visions at a debate last night in Obama's hometown. Newsday writes that the two senators went after each other with unprecedented ferocity: Clinton suggested that Obama was naive and unschooled in diplomacy, while Obama cited Clinton's authorization of the Iraq war.
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Candidate can't count on AFL-CIO but can target individual unions
Washington Post Aug 7, 07 3:50 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Even though he can’t expect broad endorsement, John Edwards is pushing hard for labor support, hoping to rack up the backing of a slew of individual unions. The Washington Post reports ahead of tonight’s AFL-CIO-sponsored Democratic forum that union backing is key to the Southerner’s strategy, even though a collective federation endorsement—which takes a two-thirds vote—is highly unlikely.
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Escalating cost of labor helps drag down growing economy
Wall Street Journal Aug 7, 07 12:54 PM CDT
(Newser)
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US productivity increased last quarter, but analysts are still worried about the economy’s ability to grow while keeping inflation at bay. Nonfarm business productivity rose by 1.8%, beating the first quarter’s rate of 0.7%, but the government was forced to lower productivity estimates for previous years, the Wall Street Journal reports.
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Proposal to unionize provokes (surprise!) mixed reactions from online community
Associated Press Aug 6, 07 5:30 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Some liberal bloggers are attempting to rally their keyboard-hammering brethren and form the first bloggers' union, an organization whose exact configuration is unclear. Some envision the group as a traditional labor faction that would fight for health benefits and recognition within the media, the AP reports, while others want a looser group of like-minded writers.
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Airline blames absenteeism for rampant cancellations, delays
ABC News Jul 29, 07 11:21 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Northwest Airlines is blaming a slew of weekend flight cancellations on a sharp rise in pilot absenteeism. The fifth-largest US airline canceled 200 flights over the past 2 days, but pilots say it has nothing to do with them skipping out on work, ABC News reports. They point the finger at maxed-out time sheets and a staffing shortage.
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Sarkozy embraces entrepreneurs, pushes limits on worker's rights
Los Angeles Times Jul 28, 07 7:42 AM CDT
(Newser)
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France could see a longer work week and new limits on workers' right to strike if President Nicholas Sarkozy gets his way. He's already reduced wealth taxes on certain investments and practically eliminated the inheritance tax, the Los Angeles Times reports. But supporters insist he will not erode social benefits or copy the freewheeling American style of capitalism.
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Inflation and higher interest rates
could cool world markets
Wall Street Journal Jun 6, 07 2:54 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Globalization and access to low-cost labor has allowed the world economy to grow without high inflation, but this economist's dream may soon end, the Wall Street Journal predicts in a cautionary report. Demand for everything from workers to lumber is increasing, raising prices—and the prospect of higher inflation.
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Hershey to shutter Calif. operation, cut thousands of jobs
Los Angeles Times May 31, 07 2:57 PM CDT
(Newser)
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In a "global supply-chain transformation," Hershey will slash its domestic workforce and build a plant in Mexico. The chocolate giant projects savings of tens of millions of dollars a year, but the numbers don't mean much in Oakdale, Calif., where 575 employees will be our of their jobs by year's end. The LA Times pays a visit.
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National minimum
goes to $7.25 by 2009, small business gets
tax breaks
New York Times May 25, 07 5:08 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Congress has raised the national minimum wage for the first time in 10 years, from $5.15 to $7.25 per hour. The hike, part of a compromise between the White House and Congress over Iraq funding, will take effect in three stages over the next two years. It will mean bigger paychecks for an estimated 5.6 million American workers.
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Senate immigration bill is assaulted by amendments from bipartisan critics
Los Angeles Times May 24, 07 7:30 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Key provisions of the immigration bill were altered yesterday as the Senate passed a raft of amendments designed to make the bill more palatable to critics from both political parties. Provisions to beef up security at the border were strengthened, while the guest worker program offering two-year visas to 400,000 temporary workers a year was cut in half.
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Dems, White House agree to labor and environmental protection in pacts
Washington Post May 11, 07 6:26 AM CDT
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Democrats have struck a deal with the White House that beefs up labor and environmental standards in pending free-trade pacts, clearing the way for agreements with Peru, Panama, South Korea, and Colombia. Provisions will be written into future deals banning forced labor, child labor and workplace discrimination, the Washington Post reports.
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