International press reports on life and work in the revolutionary new world economy
		NewWork News Archives
				Home

Grocery workers begin voting (Sunday, 2/29/04)
The longest grocery workers strike in American history may be about to end. Mason Stockstill in Los Angeles reports that two days of voting has begun and says that it appears that the tentative contract agreement contains many of the same provisions offered by the supermarket chains in October.

Outsourcing at American Airlines (Sunday, 2/29/04)
American Airlines has been cutting customer service jobs in the United States while adding them in Mexico.

Meanwhile, the U.S. tech sector has been strengthening and is likely to need more workers. That's the good news. The bad news for Americans is that most of the new jobs are likely to be go to Asia where labor is far cheaper than in the United States.

Are you sitting down? Guess where some degree of economic improvement seems to be occurring (Sunday, 2/29/04)
If there were not so much competition in the world, North Korea could easily qualify as the worst place on earth. Its government is Stalinist in a way that might make Stalin himself appear to be warm and fuzzy, and its economy has been a basket case with widespread famine during recent years. Of major concern to the rest of the world is that the only products the country has to sell in order to earn hard currency are armaments, for which there appears to be an enthusiastic market that includes international terrorist organizations. And, oh yes--these may soon include nuclear weapons, plus the missiles necessary for delivering them.

However, Business Week reports that recent visitors to Pyongyang are saying that private markets have been springing up. This may indicate a major change of direction economically, and this, in turn, may influence diplomatic efforts on reaching a deal on nuclear weapons. The economic changes may mean that North Korea's government may be getting a little less crazy, which may mean that a shift in the power balance may be occurring in the country. Who's going to be in charge over the months ahead?

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: Social Security Center (Sunday, 2/29/04)
AARP's Social Security Center provides information, news, and perspective on most of the major issues having to do with the U.S. Social Security program and its future.

Anarchy isn't good for business (Saturday, 2/28/04)
Haiti has been a desperate problem for many of the people who have lived there as well as for others who have come there for a long time. In fact, after a major portion of Napoleon's army died of yellow fever on the island, he decided to cut his losses and leave the Americas, even to the point of agreeing to dispose of Louisiana and allow Jefferson to double the size of the United States at a fire-sale price.

During modern history, just when it seems that things can't get worse in Haiti, they just go ahead and get worse anyway. James Cox reports that the current social meltdown is all but destroying an economy that has been one of the world's most desperate for years.

Workers hungry for settlement (Saturday, 2/28/04)
San Diego Union-Tribune writers David Washburn and Mike Freeman report that after nearly five months off the job, Southern California grocery workers seem ready to accept the tentative settlement and return to work, despite terms that many see as unattractive.

New data on the employment problems of New York's African American men (Saturday, 2/28/04)
Nearly half of black men in New York City are unemployed, according to a new study from the Community Service Society.

Blue-collar land no more (Saturday, 2/28/04)
For generations, southwest Michigan has been seen as smokestack territory. However, Jeff Bennett of the Detroit Free Press reports that new data from the federal government show that more than half of the region's workers now hold white-collar jobs.

Where much of your parking money has been going (Saturday, 2/28/04)
It appears that millions of dollars have been stolen by parking cashiers at D.C.-area parking lots. Here's more from Lyndsey Layton of the Washington Post.

Better to lock 'em up than teach 'em (Saturday, 2/28/04)
The Houston Chronicle's L. M. Sixel on shifting priorities in Texas and how they're being influenced by budget cuts.

The changing realities of the "forever young" (Saturday, 2/28/04)
If Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan has his way, the huge baby boom generation may have smaller Social Security checks than they expected, and, if he doesn't get his way, those checks may be smaller still. Moreover, as Gail Russell Chaddock reports, there are other reasons why millions of Americans who are approaching retirement age may have rocky later years.

Are high schools and colleges shifting roles? (Saturday, 2/28/04)
This Op/Ed piece from USA Today claims that, as high school offer more and more Advanced Placement classes, colleges are having to add more remedial courses to help students catch up on what they didn't get in high school. Is there something wrong with this picture?

Sadness for the plight of billionaires was premature (Saturday, 2/28/04)
Despite setbacks during recent years, there are now more billionaires than ever, and, because of the strengthened euro, many of them are in Europe. Here's more about the latest list from Forbes.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: The Wealthiest People on Earth (Saturday, 2/28/04)
Here's the latest list of billionaires from Forbes magazine. Harry Potter's Mom has made the list this time.

Tentative agreement is reached in grocery dispute (Friday, 2/27/04)
After 4 1/2 months, the longest U.S. supermarket strike may be ending. Tentative agreement has been reached between officials of the United Food and Commercial Workers and three supermarket chains.

In other labor news, the Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees has agreed to merge with the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees and may call itself "Unite Here." Here's more from H. J. Cummins of the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Solid GDP growth in the 4th quarter (Friday, 2/27/04)
America's Gross Domestic Product grew by 4.1 percent during the final quarter of 2003, attributable, in large part, to increased spending by American businesses. That's down from 8.2 percent during the 3rd quarter, a pace that almost no one expected could be sustained. Nonetheless, economists tend to agree that 4th-quarter growth suggests that the recovery of the U.S. economy is durable.

Effort to extend jobless benefits fails (Friday, 2/27/04)
An effort to extend unemployment benefits failed passage in the United States by only two votes. Here's more from Leigh Strope in Washington.

IBM wins one in court (Friday, 2/27/04)
Two former employees at an IBM disk drive plant claimed that the company was responsible for their cancer, but a jury has disagreed. Now, the company's attention will shift to defending itself in a bit birth defects lawsuit. May Wong has more from Santa Clara, California.

Bad news in Brazil (Friday, 2/27/04)
Alan Clendenning reports from Sao Paulo that the Brazilian economy did worse last year than it has for a decade. Not only that, but unemployment, which had been declining for several months, was up again in January

China helps Japan (Friday, 2/27/04)
Japan's exports are up, and that's helping the long-struggling Japanese economy gain strength. Moreover, guess who's buying a lot more of Japan's products? Why, China, of course, which has the fastest-growing economy in the world. U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow has called the Chinese phenomenon the most remarkable economic transformation in the history of the world.

More than three-quarters of Bangladesh's 132 million people are hungry (Friday, 2/27/04)
A new poverty map developed by Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics in conjunction with the United Nations World Food Programme shows that 77 percent of the country's people do not have enough to eat, with 27 percent of those at risk of malnutrition. Before 1971, Bangladesh was East Pakistan. Both Bangladesh and Pakistan were part of British India. Bangladesh is one of the poorest countries on earth and is adjacent to one of the poorest parts of present-day India.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: Poverty Mapping (Friday, 2/27/04)
Funding for the Poverty Mapping site comes from Norway, but this three-year project involves a network of institutions. The site offers access to a large number of poverty mapping initiatives plus information about them, and enables you to analyze the spatial distribution of poverty throughout the world, and more.

Greenspan grabs the "third rail" and flings it into the middle of the presidential campaign (Thursday, 2/26/04)
Like Dr. Gregory Mankiw, Alan Greenspan has been bringing people together. More specifically, both have Republicans as well as Democrats denouncing their ideas, but not necessarily because they're untrue. The Chairman of the Federal Reserve has managed to take the candidates' minds off of the jobs problem, at least momentarily, by saying that the United States will not be able to afford Social Security as presently structured. He is urging cuts in benefits for future recipients, rather than raising taxes, in order to head off paralyzing deficits during the years ahead. He wants to see Medicare become less generous too. Here's more on that from Edmund Andrews of the New York Times.

It's probably safe to say that both Democrats and Republicans are only slightly less delighted to hear Greenspan's remarks at this particular time than having to cope with the gay marriage issue right now. Democrats would like to focus on the jobs drought, assuming that it will not improve greatly by fall, as well as the terrorist threat and the lingering mess in Iraq. Bush campaign strategists probably have the same things on their minds, while, like the Democrats, crossing their fingers and hoping for outcomes that neither will be able to control over the months ahead. An additional terrorist attack, the capture of Osama bin Laden, civil war in Iraq, or a dramatic change in the jobs picture--any one of these could determine who will occupy the White House a year from now.

Given that the country still seems almost perfectly divided politically, November's presidential election may be decided by a few voters in a few states. Most of the so-called "red states" from 2000 are likely to remain red and most of the "blue states" are likely to remain blue. Analysts are saying that it's likely that the Democrats will win the election if they can carry Ohio and Florida, or Ohio and Missouri. Which strategy seems more likely to succeed may determine who the Democrats' vice presidential candidate will be. Bob Graham MIGHT be able to delivery Florida, Dick Gephardt MIGHT be able to deliver Missouri, and John Edwards MIGHT be able to deliver Ohio.

Meanwhile, President Bush has been knocked off balance by a series of very recent events--Gregory Mankiw's remarks about the benefits of outsourcing for the American economy, the ill-advised prediction that the U.S. economy will produce 2.6 million jobs by the end of this year, the Secretary of Education's calling the National Education Association a group of "terrorists," and now Alan Greenspan's calling attention to the growing federal deficit and how it might personally influence the huge baby-boom generation of voters when they get old.

He's also had to weigh in on the gay marriage issue in order to reassure part of his political base, when there has been every indication that he would rather have not. He risks alienating many voters with his call for a Constitutional amendment, but he's afraid that some of his supporters on the right, who have been concerned about his attitudes about immigration and the deficit, might stay home on Election Day if he doesn't give them something now. Don't expect a rush on the part of Congress to support him on the Constitutional amendment idea, though. It's just something he felt he had to say in a campaign that's already heating up.

Mass layoffs haven't completely gone away (Thursday, 2/26/04)
During the month of January, more than 2,400 companies laid off 50 or more workers. Here's more from Kirstin Downey of the Washington Post. Meanwhile, competing politicians are seeking ways to solve the jobs problem during a presidential election year when jobs may be the determining issue.

Friedman has decided that he wants to be a demagogue in his next life (Thursday, 2/26/04)
Noted New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman is in Bangalore and has been thinking about the outsourcing problem. He's hoping that there won't be an election-year rush to pass projectionist legislation.

Lycos wants to help you connect (Thursday, 2/26/04)
Lycos was one of the early search engines, but, then, became eclipsed, first by Alta Vista, then by Google. Now, Lycos wants to help you with your online social networking, for jobs as well as for other reasons.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: The Richest Presidents (Thursday, 2/26/04)
If Senator John Kerry becomes the Democratic nominee and defeats George Bush in November, he will be the third-richest president in American history. Who's number one and who are some of the others? Here's Forbes magazine's list of the richest presidents.

Slavery in Florida? (Wednesday, 2/25/04)
A new report from the Center for the Advancement of Human Rights at Florida State University says that Florida is one of the key destinations for those trafficking in human beings who are forced to work as prostitutes, farm workers and maids throughout the state.

Supreme Court defines ADEA (Wednesday, 2/25/04)
The Age Discrimination in Employment Act was intended to protect older workers, according to an important Supreme Court ruling. It settles a reverse-discrimination lawsuit and will enable employers to provide more lucrative benefits to older workers than younger ones if they choose.

Along similar lines, young people who are convinced that there will be no Social Security benefits by the time they retire may have received a little initial vindication from Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan when he suggested reducing benefits for future beneficiaries. Will we start down a slippery slope?

Enemy, then friend, then enemy again? (Wednesday, 2/25/04)
Not so many years ago, Americans were legally prohibited from visiting China. Now, American tourists go there in vast numbers. Mao's special version of Communism has been long forgotten by many Chinese, particularly younger ones. And, while the ruling party still has "Communist" in its name, the current government, while still authoritarian, may be communist in name only.

Now, China is distinguished by two major facts: it has the world's largest population, and it has the world's fastest-growing economy. The Chinese economy's enormous appetite means that China already is competing with the rest of the world for raw materials. Once America's political enemy, will China becomes its economic enemy? Maybe not. Business Week reports that at least one major American corporate economist believes that U.S. manufacturing will benefit from China's long-term growth.

What outsourcing doesn't change (Wednesday, 2/25/04)
If you're wondering what good can come from sending American jobs overseas, this opinion article may put things into perspective for you. According to the author, the only thing worse than the costs of free trade would be less free trade.

Suddenly, "offshoring" has become a major issue in the presidential campaign. For instance, Senator John Kerry says reducing the surprise would be helpful.

Senate bill would reduce employers' legal exposure (Wednesday, 2/25/04)
Providing references for employees would become less hazardous for employers if a new Senate bill ever becomes law. Here's more from Conrad Defiebre and H. J. Cummins of the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

More Hispanics are working in the U.S., but... (Wednesday, 2/25/04)
...Wages are still low. Jonathan Higuera has details in the Arizona Republic.

TVA to encourage workers to leave (Wednesday, 2/25/04)
The Tennessee Valley Authority wants to cut its debt and cutting jobs can help. However, in lieu of layoffs, TVA is offering early retirement incentives and buyout packages.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: Grad Facts (Wednesday, 2/25/04)
Grad Facts is the part of Australia's GradLink where you can obtain information about employment issues, salaries, and labor market trends.

Consumer confidence dips (Tuesday, 2/24/04)
According to the Conference Board's measure, consumer confidence dropped more than nine points in February, compared to the previous month.

U.S. manufacturers say they will add jobs this year (Tuesday, 2/24/04)
A survey of 430 companies by the National Association of Manufacturers finds that nearly two-thirds of those responding expect to hire new workers this year.

The latest on the argument about whether there's really a shortage of Americans with hi-tech skills (Tuesday, 2/24/04)
During the late 1990s, when serious people were still saying that it would take more than a decade for the supply of tech workers to begin to catch up with demand, there was considerable argument about the reasons why many tech companies were lobbying for more H1-B visas. Company executives were saying that they desperately needed to be able to bring foreign experts into the country in order to get their work done, while others were saying that it was just an attempt to drive pay down for Americans occupying those jobs. That argument raged long before the current trend of sending jobs to foreigners in their own countries, rather than bringing the foreigners to the U.S. to take the jobs.

Still, there is reason to expect that the U.S. will suffer another even more severe labor shortage some years from now, given demographic and other trends. Also, the U.S. may not be training a sufficient number of engineers and other tech experts to serve the American economy's future needs, while China and India are emphasizing technical education. What might turn out to be a short-term domestic job shortage hasn't been encouraging too many young Americans to begin pursuing technical degrees in college.

Meanwhile, Evelyn Iritani of the Los Angeles Times reports that Rockwell Scientific's CEO claims that his company simply can't find a sufficient number of technically-skilled Americans to serve its needs. Foreign talent is necessary for the company's survival, he says.

Higher ed's cost bind and its implications (Tuesday, 2/24/04)
At a time when education seems more important than ever for America's future, access to higher educational services has been narrowing again in the United States as tuition costs increase. Colleges and universities are trying to control their costs, and in a traditionally labor-intensive industry, a major part of a higher educational institution's budget is committed to labor, so that's where most reductions have to come from. Kimberly Chase tells how most universities are becoming more and more dependent on part-time faculty and what that may mean for the quality of the educational experience for students.

Incidentally, as "distance education" becomes an increasingly important part of higher ed, will "offshoring" begin to transform this sector of the American economy as well? Many American undergraduates already are taught on U.S. university campuses by foreign graduate students. With the movement toward greater reliance on "adjunct" faculty, plus the fact that geography is largely irrelevant on the Internet, will many U.S. students find themselves instructed by people in, say, Bangalore or Beijing?

More than private accounts needed? (Tuesday, 2/24/04)
Despite the President's apparent enthusiasm for allowing workers to divert part of their payroll taxes into personal savings accounts, an effective rescue of the Social Security system will require more, according to this USA Today opinion piece.

Why the President may want new economic advisors (Tuesday, 2/24/04)
The Washington Post's Dana Milbank finds that the Administration's economic forecasts have missed their targets several times during the past few years.

Health costs may be a barrier to entrepreneurship (Tuesday, 2/24/04)
Larry Werner writes that many people who would like to work exclusively for themselves are keeping their regular jobs in order to keep the health coverage.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: Repetitive Stress Injury (Tuesday, 2/24/04)
Here's Cay Dickson's collection of web resources having to do with repetitive stress injuries.

Will China have the world's largest economy within a third of a century? (Monday, 2/23/04)
A UK-based research firm is predicting that China's economy will be larger than that of the United States by 2038. While this may or may not turn out to be true, if China overtakes the United States anytime during the 21st century, it will be of vast historic significance. China's huge size and rapid growth means that it's already increasing competition for the world's resources. For a variety of reasons, you can expect political tensions, both within China as well as internationally. Here's more from the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Offshore protection (Monday, 2/23/04)
Leaders of many tech companies in India are concerned that election-year politics in the United States could curtail the outsourcing of technical jobs from the U.S. Narayanan Madhavan and Anshuman Daga report from Bangalore that at least one Silicon Valley venture capitalist is advising India's hi-tech industry to use the World Trade Organization to insure that outsourcing remain part of the free-trade movement.

Hispanic unemployment rate increases (Monday, 2/23/04)
During the second half of last year, the Hispanic jobless rate declined, but that trend reversed in January, when it increased to 7.3 percent.

Household finances are generally okay, according to Greenspan (Monday, 2/23/04)
The recent surge in home mortgage refinancing has helped many Americans get their household finances in order, according to Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan. The rest of us should care because consumer spending makes up about two-thirds of the American economy.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: University Business (Monday, 2/23/04)
Online magazine University Business tracks the many changes that are occurring across all of higher education. In addition to the publication's current edition and two-year archive, a daily email newsletter is available at no charge.

Presidential race may hinge on jobs issue (Sunday, 2/22/04)
A new poll commissioned by Newsweek magazine finds that jobs and foreign competition are much on the minds of American voters a bit more than eight months before Election Day. It's possible that this will be the issue that will determine who will be occupying the White House a year from now. Strangely, Senator John Edwards has been talking about NAFTA at nearly every campaign stop, even though far more American jobs have been going to India and China than to Mexico.

Of course, Iraq and international terrorism certainly aren't off the table. For instance, if there is a full-blown Civil War in Iraq by late fall and Americans there are still dying, it might not be very good for President Bush's re-election chances. On other hand, if Osama bin Laden is captured sometime during the second half of October, the President isn't likely to have to pack his bags and prepare for a move back to Texas, no matter who his Democratic opponent is.

With economic improvement under novel, little understood conditions, nobody really knows how many jobs will be created for Americans between now and November. It's possible that there will be enough improvement in jobs creation by that time that the Bush campaign will be able to make a convincing case for additional patience. At the moment, though, it appears that the Administration would like voters to believe things aren't as bad as they appear; that fewer people have jobs now because more have become self-employed. At least one survey offers some support for that idea. Here's more from Edmund Andrews of the New York Times.

There is reason why Republican campaign strategists might want to distract voter attention from conventional measures. L. M. Sixel of the Houston Chronicle explains why the 8.3 million active job seekers could turn into more than 13 million BECAUSE of an improving economy.

More on that CPI increase, and why we shouldn't over-interpret it (Sunday, 2/22/04)
Underlying inflation in the U.S. economy seems to be okay, despite the rise in the Consumer Price Index. It has to do with a single factor-- increased energy costs--not the overall condition of the economy. Here's more from Jeannine Aversa in Washington.

Meanwhile, Japan's problem hasn't been inflation, but deflation, and some Japanese government officials are seeing some improvement.

Cheaters beware--the IRS is getting fed up (Sunday, 2/22/04)
Officials at the Internal Revenue Service intend to continue their "kinder and gentler" approach for honest, conscientious taxpayers, but it's time for crooks to stop relaxing. Lesley Mitchell of the Salt Lake Tribune has more on the IRS' efforts to step up its criminal enforcement efforts.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: Budget of the United States Government (Sunday, 2/22/04)
If you'd like a little light bedtime reading, here's the Budget of the United States Government for fiscal year 2005. You can download the entire humongous 63-megabyte thing and save a little wear and tear on your back--so long as you don't print it out--or you can simply examine selected sections on screen.

Fed officials try to be reassuring about jobs (Saturday, 2/21/04)
Not to worry--the jobs will come, according to officials of the Federal Reserve, while others continue to wonder if the American economy, as an increasingly integrated part of the new global economy, has undergone a "paradigm shift."

Meanwhile, Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan warns against "protectionist cures" for the current offshoring problem.

Greenspan calls for better-educated workers (Saturday, 2/21/04)
Fed Head Alan Greenspan believes that more and better education and training for everybody in American society will be required if people are to obtain and hold the good jobs that he and other members of the Fed expect the U.S. economy to produce.

As broadband Internet access becomes ubiquitous and as technology takes "distance education" far beyond the "electronic page-turning" correspondence courses of its early stages, we expect educational services to be delivered by a variety of means, traditional as well as innovative. However, Ken Maguire tells why it's important to be careful who you link up with and why the "privatizing" fad may lose some of its momentum, at least in relation to education.

If you believe that government-run programs are always less efficient and less effective than those run by private-sector organizations, you're probably hoping that America will turn its defense over to mercenaries, as well as abandon public education, despite its noble historic goal of educating everybody.

However, we believe that, at the K-12 level, while some public schools are awful, many are wonderful, and the trick will be to fix the awful ones without messing up the wonderful ones or destroying public education altogether.

We also believe that the Morrill Land Grant College Act that President Lincoln signed into law in December 1861 set in motion processes that transformed America by creating a vast network of state-supported universities in which America's non-aristocrats could receive a splendid education. We also believe that the modern American community college was one of the most important inventions of the 20th century.

The Iraqi economy improves (Saturday, 2/21/04)
Surprise! Iraqi may not remain a basket case forever. Given its human and economic resources, it should be a modern, wealthy country, but the long years during which it was ruled by what amounted to organized crime families resulted, not only in the destruction of its infrastructure, but also in political chaos that will require time to overcome. Politically, it's not surprising that no one in Iraq seemed to understand what a "caucus" is, and it will be unrealistic to expect the country to be turned into a Maine or Wisconsin anytime soon. Nonetheless, it will be a mistake to assume that nothing but disaster is possible. For instance, James Cox of USA Today reports that at least one Treasury official on the scene is finding some pleasant economic surprises.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: Cities Feeding People (Saturday, 2/21/04)
Cities Feeding People comes from Canada's International Development Research Centre. The world's poor have been benefiting significantly from the incorporation of agriculture into urban areas. In fact, according to the Cities Feeding People site, there are about 800 million urban farmers so far.

CPI lurches upward in January (Friday, 2/20/04)
The Consumer Price Index, the most widely-watched measure of inflation in the American economy, increased by 0.5 percent in January, but the rise in energy costs seems to have been the reason. Underlying inflation in the economy still seems moderate.

Thousands of Canada's rail workers strike (Friday, 2/20/04)
The CAW, representing 5,000 CN Rail workers, has announced that a strike began at midnight Thursday following the failure of last-minute negotiations.

In other labor news, the United Steelworkers of America is calling for an investigation of Goodyear Rubber Company, which it believes is violating its labor contract by producing a new tire at a non-unionized plant.

Kerry gets AFL-CIO endorsement (Friday, 2/20/04)
The big labor confederation has thrown its political weight to Senator John Kerry, apparently with the hope that it will help Democrats unite behind one candidate so that available resources can be focused on defeating President Bush in November.

The White House shifts to containment mode (Friday, 2/20/04)
Steve Holland reports from Washington that the Administration is scrambling to blunt the potential political impact of its most recent jobs report.

IBM may have to pay its older employees billions of dollars (Friday, 2/20/04)
A federal judge has ruled that 140,000 IBM workers were harmed by the company's shift to a "cash balance" pension plan.

Manufacturing hamburgers? (Friday, 2/20/04)
Should fast-food workers be counted as part of the service industry, or as part of manufacturing? Placing them in the latter category might help the manufacturing statistics a bit, now that the CBO says that many of the lost manufacturing jobs probably aren't coming back, no matter how hot the U.S. economy gets.

Brainstorming over the RN shortage (Friday, 2/20/04)
Nurses in Minnesota have been getting together to work out possible solutions to the shortage of nurses by making the field more attractive. Here's more from today's Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: The Pew Hispanic Center (Friday, 2/20/04)
America's Hispanic population has been growing in political and economic influence, so Philadelphia's Pew Charitable Trusts established its Washington, D.C.-based Pew Hispanic Center in 2001 with the intention of helping to achieve a better understanding of its impact on the nation.

First-time jobless claims decline significantly (Thursday, 2/19/04)
New Labor Department data show that jobless claims declined last week by the largest amount since early November. Improved weather conditions are given some of the credit.

The White House plays Santa Claus (Thursday, 2/19/04)
The President certainly doesn't have a big white beard and doesn't go "Ho, ho, ho" much, to our knowledge. Nonetheless, he and some of his economic advisors have been generous enough to give the Democrats a gift or two during recent days.

Doug Wead's interesting new book, All the Presidents' Children, shows that many presidential children have not made out too well, and having the same name as President Dad seems to have been particularly hazardous, often lethal. George W. Bush has averted the early death that afflicted many of his predecessors, but it seems widely understood--and frequently acknowledged by him--that he was a different kind of person during his youth before undergoing some sort of transformation when he was about forty years old. Rather than the drifting, irresponsible, borderline-alcoholic he once was, he now seems greatly focused and highly disciplined with a clear sense of identity, commitment, and purpose, although we might wish that he had managed to catch up a bit more on the education that he mostly blew off when he attended Yale as a young man.

All in all, it probably won't surprise too many people who have followed the President's personal development to hear that he may not have taken his National Guard duties too seriously during those early years either. But, again, he doesn't appear to be the same person now. Nonetheless, this is a an election year during which both sides are likely to use all available means in their effort to win in November. Tough politicians whom we and our Constitution have placed in political situations cannot be expected to behave as we would hope our neighbors or friends would.

Democratic presidential campaign strategists managed to put the President's military record on the front pages for several days, and they've been hoping to keep him off balance and on the defensive one way or another during the months leading up to the November election, thinking that unforeseen events might help.

However, the Democrats may not have expected to get so much help from the White House itself. The Administration has had to retreat from two recent assertions: that the U.S. economy will add 2.6 million jobs by the end of this year, and that sending U.S. jobs overseas really is good for the economy in the long-run. At the moment, Democratic strategists must feel that they've gone to heaven. However, the fact that they been handed some ammunition by the President and his economic advisors doesn't mean that they have a clear plan for solving the jobs problem themselves.

Dangerous euphoria over cheap money? (Thursday, 2/19/04)
Victoria Thieberger reports that Federal Reserve officials are concerned that investors are getting too accustomed to low interest rates and are taking too many risks again.

Many workers are getting raises they won't see (Thursday, 2/19/04)
Skyrocketing health care costs are consuming increased wages, in many cases. Here's more from David Phelps of the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Carnegie Mellon creates robot receptionist (Thursday, 2/19/04)
This receptionist has a personality and may or may not be a sign of things to come in the American workplace.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: RAND Institute for Civil Justice (Thursday, 2/19/04)
RAND is one of the best-known think tanks in the world. Its Institute for Civil Justice provides the public as well as governmental and other decision makers with the results of its empirical research with the intention of making the civil justice system for efficient and more equitable.

Whoops--maybe not that many after all (Wednesday, 2/18/04)
When the White House predicted that the U.S. economy would create 2.6 million jobs before end of the year, many Republican campaign strategists seemed to faint dead away, while Democratic strategists were heard to smack their lips. Now, the Administration is backing off a prediction that many people have found implausible, blaming it on the Council of Economic Advisors.

And, if that weren't enough, Mankiw reconsiders (Wednesday, 2/18/04)
Gregory Mankiw, Chairman of President Bush's Council of Economic Advisors, seems to have learned something about the relationship between economics and politics, particularly for somebody who works for the nation's most visible politician. He's decided that he wasn't praising U.S. job losses after all, and that his earlier remarks were misinterpreted. Whatever the truth of the matter, the goal of politicians during an election year is to persuade and win elections, not provide accurate descriptions of realities. Truth telling isn't necessarily a political virtue.

On the other hand, there are many scholars who do not occupy politically-sensitive roles and who really are interested in following truth "wherever it leads." RAND, the famous California-based think thank, was commissioned by the Labor Department to examine the likely nature of the nation's future work force. Here are some of their findings, many of which probably won't surprise Professor Mankiw, even if he can't say so.

Tokyo land prices begin to stabilize (Wednesday, 2/18/04)
In Holland, it was the great 17th century tulip bubble which had some persons paying the equivalent of several thousand U.S. dollars for a single tulip bulb. In the U.S., it was the dot-comedy of the late 1990s that convinced many people that AOL's stock really was worth twice as much as Time Warner's, which led to one of history's most ill-advised mergers, which led to the blowing away of $200 BILLION of stockholder value in only three years.

However, in Japan, it was the great real estate bubble. Japan's economy is in its second decade of struggle following the bubble's bursting and the massive bad bank loans left in its wake. Mariko Sanchanta reports that land values in some parts of Tokyo have begun to stabilize after downward spiraling over the past dozen years or more.

Poor countries seek common ground with the rich (Wednesday, 2/18/04)
Matthew Green and Manoah Esipisu report from Mombasa, Kenya on efforts to rescue global trade talks.

Jury decides that workers are entitled to overtime payments (Wednesday, 2/18/04)
A federal jury has ruled that 83 Wal-Mart workers in Oregon are entitled to receive compensation for unpaid overtime.

Financial expert calls for potentially drastic behavioral changes (Wednesday, 2/18/04)
William Arnone says that more and more people will depend on income from their 401(k)s, but he's afraid that the financial security of millions of Americans may be undermined by problems that will require behavioral changes on the part of both employers and employees. Here's part of an interview with Mr. Arnone conducted by Business Week.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: Canada e-Book (Wednesday, 2/18/04)
The Canadian government offers a nice summary of the country on its Canada e-Book site. You'll find information about the land, the people, the economy, and the state.

Will the economy work to the President's advantage in November? Well, yes and no, or maybe (Tuesday, 2/17/04)
It depends on whether more voters will be concerned about the jobs drought or whether more will be cheered by the housing boom, tax cuts, and a strengthening stock market. Here are more thoughts on the subject from Jonathan Weisman of the Washington Post.

KC Fed President talks about cautious employers (Tuesday, 2/17/04)
Thomas Hoenig is President of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. In this Q&A, he tells why employers are still feeling cautious about adding new workers.

High-value jobs also leave Germany (Tuesday, 2/17/04)
The U.S. isn't the only country that is exporting many of its better jobs to India and other regions with low labor costs. S. Srinivasan in Bangalore reports that Germany's Siemens intends to move most of 15,000 programming jobs from Western Europe as well as the United States to a variety of locations, including India, where many qualified people are willing to work for far less than Americans or Western Europeans. This trend is likely to be of great interest to German labor unions, but, as Geir Moulson reports from Berlin, they're finding themselves more and more on the defensive as the the country's power balance shifts.

Meanwhile, America's tech sector is showing signs of increased alertness after a long slumber. Fewer highly-skilled foreign workers will be allowed into the United States, as the number of available H-1B visas is cut by two-thirds. Does this mean that new tech jobs will go to qualified Americans, or will they be sent overseas?

Also, Ron Scherer and Kimberly Chase report that many Americans, including several leading politicians, are pushing the idea of retraining as a solution to America's employment problems. However, they wonder if updating the skills of Americans will really make them more attractive to U.S. employers than similarly-qualified people in India and elsewhere who may be willing for work for a tenth as much.

Stop & Shop workers approve contract (Tuesday, 2/17/04)
Workers in three states averted a strike on Sunday by approving a new agreement that negotiators had reached earlier in the day.

2005 to be "year of microcredit" (Tuesday, 2/17/04)
Approximately 1,300 economists and government officials from 44 countries have been meeting in Bangladesh to discuss plans for making no-collateral "micro-loans" available to 100 million people within a year.

First, time cards; now, pay cards (Tuesday, 2/17/04)
USA Today's Stephanie Armour reports that more American workers are getting cards that can be used in ATM machines instead of pay checks.

Minnesota's healthy health care sector (Tuesday, 2/17/04)
Experts expect the growth of health care jobs to lead Minnesota's economy for at least a decade. Statistics from Minnesota's Department of Employment and Economic Development show that 94,000 health care workers have been added during the past ten years, and the sector's payroll increased 20 percent faster than the rate of inflation. Here's more from David Phelps in the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

If you want to earn more, you should do something about your height (Tuesday, 2/17/04)
Height counts, and not just in basketball. Research shows that there is a linear correlation between height and earnings. That is, the taller people are, the more they tend to earn. The fact that many Americans are still bigoted about physical characteristics isn't news, although many probably don't realize it and would be surprised to find that such biases are influencing their hiring or promoting decisions.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: My First Day (Tuesday, 2/17/04)
My First Day is intended to give high school students a look at health care careers. However, there is much detailed information about many health-related occupations that may be of interest to college students and others, as well.

Will Wisconsin turn out to be a microcosm of the country in November? (Monday, 2/16/04)
Sue Kirchhoff says that high unemployment and the loss of jobs overseas seem to be key concerns in the Wisconsin primary. Some are saying that exportation of high-value jobs, a burning issue to which we helped light the match with Dr. William Raynor's first of three BNWW articles on the subject about a year ago, could become the principal issue in the fall presidential campaign. If Iraq erupts into full-scale civil war by that time, maybe not. At any rate, stay tuned.

Where are those millions of new jobs going to come from? (Monday, 2/16/04)
The more optimistic forecasters are expecting the American economy to generate more than 21 million new jobs by the end of 2012, and most of them will come from the service sector. However, "services" include some of the highest-paid occupations (e.g., heart surgeon) as well as some of the lowest-paid (dishwasher). In fact, according to current analyses, only three of the 10 occupations expected to grow the fastest will require a two-year college degree or more. Meanwhile, job losses in the manufacturing sector are expected to slow--perhaps, in part, because there will be fewer of them left to lose.

Kevin Duchschere of the Minneapolis Star Tribune tells about Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty's JOBZ program as an example of government's increasing role in the attempt to stimulate new job growth.

Economics and same-sex marriage (Monday, 2/16/04)
Most familiar human institutions have their roots in a time that most modern humans would not recognize. For instance, in many societies, the marriage institution started as an economic arrangement between families, sanctioned by the community. The individuals getting married had little say in the matter. Only fairly recently has "romantic love" been regarded as a legitimate reason for marriage, and only recently have people felt that they should be able to decide whom they should marry. Nonetheless, political and economic factors have continued to play a role, and the community--as represented by religious and legal institutions--has continued to insist that it has a stake in personal unions as well as a say in how "marriage" is defined. In recent years, not only in the United States, but across North Atlantic countries, an increasing number of individuals are insisting that they can decide on their own how they will pair off--that they don't require the community's permission. Many people are living in stable, long-term unions without "signing on the dotted line." and many of these last longer than many official "marriages."

So, what is the essence of "marriage" without which it would not be a real marriage? Many Christians would say that it is fundamentally a religious sacrament, but that would leave out billions of people throughout the world who do not consider themselves Christians in the least, but who still feel that they are married. On the other hand, is marriage basically a legal contract? What about those couples who were legally married and who have never bothered to get divorced, even though they haven't lived together, and perhaps haven't even seen one another for years? Are they "more married" than those couples who have shared households, shared finances, and raised children without the participation of either religious or legal officials? And, as we have asked, rhetorically, couldn't a couple stranded together for life on a desert island where there are no religious officials and no judges simply "shake on it" and decide that they are "married," however they define that term themselves?

In principle, the law recognizes a verbal contract as being as binding as a written contract. However, as everyone knows, there are practical advantages to "getting it in writing." If people simply make a verbal commitment to one another, they may disagree later on the nature of the agreement, and, without something in writing, the law won't be able to play its "referee" or "decider of last resort" role.

In most American communities in 2004, people are free to develop their own relationships and call them by whatever names they like, whether these relationships involve same-sex or different-sex individuals, and whether or not the law regards them as binding.

So, what is the current fuss over "same-sex marriage" really all about? It seems to come down to concern with a variety of highly practical issues, many economic, such as property rights, inheritance rights, family health insurance coverage, etc., in which the community still plays a role in decision-making, particularly when facts are unclear or in the case of disputes. What does legal recognition of same-sex unions mean for these issues? Financial arrangements are likely to remain complicated.

Millionaires who don't realize they're millionaires (Monday, 2/16/04)
A million dollars certainly isn't what it used to be, and, in fact, most people with a million dollars worth of assets would be surprised to learn that they technically qualify as millionaires. Shannon Bugs of the Houston Chronicle reports that most "millionaires" have saved their way to that magic first million, often without realizing it. Are you saving enough to make that happen, or, at least, to finance your retirement? If not, Scott Burns has some suggestions for getting on track while it's still not too late.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: Q&A on Tax Refunds (Monday, 2/16/04)
What if the IRS owes YOU money? Here are some answers to some frequently wondered-about questions about tax refunds. Incidentally, many of the people to whom the Internal Revenue Service owes billions of dollars altogether will never collect because they haven't filed tax returns. Why? Because many haven't made enough to be required to file, but money may be waiting for them anyway.

Record U.S. trade deficit (Sunday, 2/15/04)
The United States is buying far more from other countries than other countries are buying from it. A record trade deficit was established in 2002, but 2003's deficit was more than 17 percent larger.

China's industrial production surges (Sunday, 2/15/04)
Industrial production in China was up 19 percent in January, compared to the previous January. Here's more from the International Herald Tribune in Beijing.

Prison guards protest working conditions (Sunday, 2/15/04)
Guards at Canada's Archambault federal penitentiary call their working conditions "deplorable." Three-hundred of them staged a protest Friday.

New reasons for job losses (Sunday, 2/15/04)
Steve Lohr writes that the loss of American jobs to areas of the world where labor costs are lower, but there are some new causes for the migration.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: Accessibility in Distance Education (Sunday, 2/15/04)
The NEC Foundation of America and Verizon Foundation maintain the Accessibility in Distance Education site because of a concern that persons with disabilities have full access to online materials used in distance education programs

Mortgage rates fall (Saturday, 2/14/04)
Freddie Mac reports that 30-year mortgage rates fell last week to an average of 5.66 percent.

Mankiw's economic colleagues agree, but... (Saturday, 2/14/04)
Gregory Mankiw, President Bush's economic advisor, stirred the presidential-election-year political kettle by saying what many economists believe to be true: that the movement of American jobs overseas may help the American economy in the long-run. However, the shorter-run is another matter. Here's more from the Detroit Free Press' Ken Moritsugu.

Boeing workers decide to keep their union (Saturday, 2/14/04)
Roxana Hegeman reports that technical and professional workers at Boeing's Wichita, Kansas location have voted narrowly to maintain their union representation.

Seniors stay on the job (Saturday, 2/14/04)
An increasing number of older people are choosing to keep working beyond normal retirement age, some because they have to, many because they want to.

More business travelers are booking online (Saturday, 2/14/04)
Online systems are capturing an increasing share of the business travel market. Here's more from Michael Conlon in Chicago.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: World Bank: Globalization (Saturday, 2/14/04)
The World Bank attempts to clear the air a bit on globalization by examining its nature and clarifying many of the major issues involved in the growing integration of many of the world's societies and economies.

Congressional deal frees up pension bill (Friday, 2/13/04)
Senate Democrats had been blocking a House-Senate conference on the new pension bill that could save employers billions of dollars in order to protest their exclusion from negotiations on key legislation. However, a deal has been made, which is likely to mean that the new pension legislation will move ahead and end up on the President's desk before too long.

More layoffs at Kmart (Friday, 2/13/04)
The troubled retailer emerged from bankruptcy about nine months ago, but slumping holiday sales have led to additional cost-cutting. More workers will be laid off as part of a store-by-store review, but the company isn't saying how many, according to the Miami Herald.

Competition for worst of the worst (Friday, 2/13/04)
It's hard to find anyone outside the President's immediate circle who has much good to say about the federal government's finances or the new White House budget. But, what is the biggest "bomb" in the budget?

Union moves to secure equity for workers who served in Iraq (Friday, 2/13/04)
The union representing mechanics at Northwest Airlines is pushing to be sure that mechanics who were called to military duty in Iraq will not be put at a disadvantage by their employer. Here's more from Liz Fedor of the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Revisionist history? (Friday, 2/13/04)
A new Business Week commentary alleges that the Administration has been rewriting economic history for political purposes.

Strategies for shielding your retirement savings (Friday, 2/13/04)
Taxes can take a lot of your income, so it's important to make use of available strategies for minimizing the tax bite from your retirement savings. USA Today offers some advice on how to make use of tax-deferred or tax-free options provided by the Congress.

Meanwhile, a GAO report finds that many government contractors aren't paying their taxes even when they're still receiving payments. And, contrary to widespread belief, it isn't only contractors working for the Defense Department.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: eCollege (Friday, 2/13/04)
eCollege provides software and a range of services for online education programs.

Greenspan's good news (Thursday, 2/12/04)
Fed Head Alan Greenspan had mostly good things to say about the American economy when he testified before the House Committee on Financial Services yesterday, and the equity markets liked what they heard.

Whoops--suddenly, a little troubling economic news (Thursday, 2/12/04)
Retail sales slipped in January, and first-time unemployment claims went up. However, the weather is blamed for the jobless numbers.

The developing hiring picture for 2004 (Thursday, 2/12/04)
Business Week offers its view of job creation prospects for the remainder of this year in two parts. Here's Part 1, and here's Part 2.

A professor who is unaccustomed to firestorms steps in it (Thursday, 2/12/04)
To continue the shameless mix of metaphors, former Harvard Professor Gregory Mankiw has put his head in the lion's mouth with his comments about "offshoring." Thumper avised that, "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all," but he might add that it's better not to try to say something nice about the exportation of American jobs during a presidential election year.

Professor Mankiw heads the President's Council of Economic Advisers, and he has managed to do the near-impossible--bring Republicans and Democrats together. They're all blasting him.

Even ordinarily friendly, mild-mannered former secondary-school teacher Dennis Hastert may have remembered a few bad words he wouldn't let his students utter in school during the years before he became Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Meanwhile, the Washington Post's Steven Pearlstein has some thoughts about "offshoring" and Dr. Mankiw's remarks, including the popular assumption among economists that if a lot of trade is good, a lot more is a lot better.

An impressive doctor bill (Thursday, 2/12/04)
A new report from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services says that Americans spent nearly $1.7 billion on health care last year. That amounts to a 7.8 percent increase for the year, which is less than many had expected.

Certainly not a "tax and spend" president (Thursday, 2/12/04)
For many years, part of the Republic mantra whenever referring to Democrats has been that they just "tax and spend, tax and spend." This Business Week opinion piece seems to suggest that President Bush has become part Democrat; i.e., he spends, but he doesn't tax, and that means growing deficits that should get everyone's attention. The article includes a little history and a very brief Keynesian primer. Vice President Cheney is said to have remarked to somebody recently that "Reagan proved that deficits don't matter." However, he might have meant that they may not matter when it comes to winning elections, not that they don't matter economically.

Will you be displaced by a steel-collar worker? (Thursday, 2/12/04)
Eric Auchard writes from San Diego about the low-cost robots that are taking some jobs from humans, but, so far, few people seem to mind much.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: Milestones in the History of the Walt Disney Company (Thursday, 2/12/04)
With Comcast hoping to take over Disney, it might be a good time to look at the history of the company, which, for decades, seemed to be as much a part of the definition of American family life as Yellowstone National Park. Long Island's Newsday provides a summary of the principal milestones in the history of the Walt Disney Company.

Disney head Michael Eisner published his autobiography just before the company started down a long rocky patch. Now, Walt's nephew Roy Disney is doing his best to unseat Michael, hoping that this would result in a rejuvenated company.

Disney's problems are multiple. Its ABC television network has been struggling for quite sometime after it beat to death its hit "Who Wants To Be a Millionaire" by putting it on four times per week, meaning that, when they finally had to pull the plug on the show, it left, not one primetime slot to fill, but four. As an indication of how well things have been going since, the network is putting "Millionaire" back on for a multi-night run late this month.

Moreover, the 9-11 terrorist attack slammed the travel industry hard, including theme parks, of which Disney has several. Also, after building its initial reputation on family-oriented animation features, it now finds itself in a situation similar to that of Eastman Kodak. Its principal competitor is not Warner Brothers, which also produces animations the old-fashioned way, but, instead, hi-tech companies that have had nothing to do with feature-film production until recently. For instance, after creating the most successful animated feature film in history, "Finding Nemo," Steve Jobs' Pixar Corporation has decided that they don't need Disney nearly as much as Disney probably needs them. For the young, Pixar may be as recognizable a brand as Disney, now that the tech company has produced nothing but hits over the past decade.

So, has Disney reached a point where it is worth more to Comcast as part of a synergistic, vertical integration plan than it is to itself and its stockholders? We shall see.

Democrats pounce on offshoring remarks (Wednesday, 2/11/04)
In case anyone is wondering, Gregory Mankiw is the President's economic advisor, not his political advisor. His remarks about the likely benefits of sending U.S. jobs overseas could have come at a somewhat better time, from the Administration's point of view. Edmund Andrews of the New York Times tells about Democratic responses to Mr. Mankiw's possibly thoughtless decision to "pour gasoline into the toaster" during a presidential campaign year.

GMAC agrees to settlement (Wednesday, 2/11/04)
General Motors Acceptance Corporation has been accused in a class-action suit of allowing higher interest rates for minority car buyers. They've agreed to settle the six-year-old suit.

WTO rules in favor of Canadian Wheat Board, but... (Wednesday, 2/11/04)
The World Trade Organization has ruled that Canada's Wheat Board is legal under international law, but calls for changes, nonetheless. Here's more from Ottawa.

Presidents often get credit or blame for things they don't necessarily control (Wednesday, 2/11/04)
The increasing rich-poor gap in the United States is a product of many factors, not just policies of the current administration. Nonetheless, David Francis says that President Bush's re-election prospects could be influenced by it.

IRS finds millions offshore (Wednesday, 2/11/04)
If you've been using offshore scams or shelters to hide income from the Internal Revenue Service, they probably know about you, and maybe you've heard from them already. So far, $170 million has been collected from persons such as yourself.

Seniors hold out in Southern Europe (Wednesday, 2/11/04)
Many of the French, Italians, and Spanish are going on the Internet in droves, but not those in their later years. European governments are paying close attention because of possible opportunities to cut operating costs by making more use of the Internet.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: The 25 Fastest Growing Technology Stars (Wednesday, 2/11/04)
Even thought the U.S. tech sector has been in a slump lately, and California's Silicon Valley has been hurting, there are hi-tech companies that are doing well. Here's another for Forbes magazine's famous lists: The 25 Fastest Growing Technology Stars.

Bush reports to Congress (Tuesday, 2/10/04)
In the latest Economic Report of the President, President Bush tells Congress that the American economy is "strong and getting stronger." The report predicts that 2.6 million jobs will be created this year.

Head White House economist says jobs exportation is a good thing (Tuesday, 2/10/04)
Gregory Mankiw, chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, says that the international outsourcing of service jobs is good for the American economy. Here's more from Washington Post writer Jonathan Weisman.

Grocery talks resume (Tuesday, 2/10/04)
The big Southern California grocery strike and lockout continues, but, for the first time in nearly two months, talks are starting up again.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: AIESEC (Tuesday, 2/10/04)
AIESEC, the International Association of Students in Business and Economics, was founded in Europe in 1948. It places students in temporary jobs within an 85-country network in order to broaden their experience and strengthen their academic studies.

Asian nations cool to G7's call for currency changes (Monday, 2/9/04)
Representatives of the world's largest industrial nations have been meeting at Boca Raton, Florida and have decided that they would like to see more flexibility in currency exchange rates. China's government officials apparently heard the message that indirectly was intended for them. They say they are studying reforms, but not in response to the G7's pleas.

Biz Week looks at hiring for the year (Monday, 2/9/04)
Here's the first part of Business Week's report on job creation prospects for 2004.

One-day strike in Italy (Monday, 2/9/04)
Italy's doctors and pilots have walked off their jobs for the day in order to protest spending cutbacks and pay freezes. Emergency medical personnel are staying at their posts.

Indian beneficiaries of U.S. offshoring worry about political backlash (Monday, 2/9/04)
It's an election year, and many people besides presidential aspirants will be seeking public office or trying to hang on to offices they already hold. It's fairly likely, given all the uncertainty about jobs in the United States, that one or more major candidates will be talking a lot about the exportation of high-value jobs to other countries. India is chief among those countries that contain many highly-qualified people who would be happy to work for a fraction of what similarly-qualified Americans expect to earn. Saritha Rai in Bombay tells about growing anxiety over the rapid buildup of opposition to "outsourcing" in the U.S.

Meanwhile, Daniel Gross reports that American manufacturing's difficulty competing with plants in underdeveloped countries is only part of their problem. Because of the increasing cost of healthcare added to structural costs of doing business, U.S. companies are having more and more trouble competing with manufacturing in developed countries as well.

Deficit boredom (Monday, 2/9/04)
David Leonardt writes that, despite widespread concern about the ballooning federal budget deficit, the bond market seems unconcerned.

Stand back: the largest transfer of wealth in human history is about to begin (Monday, 2/9/04)
Newhouse News Service reports on the implications of an aging population for charitable organizations.

Boomers think about how to avoid going bust in a few years (Monday, 2/9/04)
The oldest among those Americans born between 1946 and 1964 are beginning to enter early retirement, and the rest are thinking about how they will continue to pay the bills when they're no longer working full-time, according to the Indianapolis Star. Meanwhile, the Des Moines Register's Patt Johnson reports that, for many boomers, retirement won't really mean retirement.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: FAFSA and More (Monday, 2/9/04)
FAFSA stands for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. It's one of the forms you will have to fill out if you want to apply for higher education loans or grants. Here's more from the Houston Chronicle's Shannon Buggs on how to find the money necessary for attending college, now that access to higher education has been narrowing again. Many of today's young people may find that their quest for college will involve difficulties similar to those of their great-grandparents who were young in the 1930s.

Bush puts a happy face on job outlook (Sunday, 2/8/04)
It appears that President Bush's campaign apparatus had been gearing up to compete with Howard Dean whom they expected would self-destruct sometime during the late summer or fall, possibly even becoming the Democrats' very-own unpleasant "October surprise." Instead, Dr. Dean's campaign blew up early, meaning that the President is likely to have to compete with someone who is more politically-mature and sure-footed, as well as a party which, after years of forming circular firing squads, may finally be finding its groove.

Also, President Bush has been having some bad weeks and has been dropping in the polls, suggesting that he could be in genuine trouble after many months of apparent invincibility. In addition to strengthening opposition from the Democrats, much will depend on the situation in Iraq--a full-blown civil war in the late summer or fall wouldn't be helpful--as well as the U.S. job outlook.

The President says things are improving. In his weekly radio address, he noted that unemployment dropped to 5. 6 percent in January, which is the lowest in more than two years. However, as we've pointed out repeatedly, unemployment statistics must be interpreted carefully, taking into consideration the methods used for gathering them. For instance, sometimes the unemployment rate drops because fewer people are looking for work, not necessarily because they have found employment, but because some simply give up and stop searching.

Also, the President pointed out that 366,000 jobs have been added during the past five months. That's certainly better than losing jobs, as has been the case for most of the past three years, but 150,000 new jobs are required each month simply in order to absorb employment demand arising from population increases. It will take far more than 366,000 jobs in five months simply in order to keep up, let along recover the more than the 2 million jobs that have evaporated since George Bush II was inaugurated.

One reason for sluggish job creation (Sunday, 2/8/04)
In a healthcare system that is broken, employees and employers alike are feeling the tightening squeeze. It's another major reason why employers are putting off hiring new workers as long as they can.

Also, Michael Flaherty in New York explains why larger profits don't necessarily mean more hiring. Hint: think about what businesses are trying to do, and also think about which is cause and which is consequence.

Finance officials would like to see currencies settle down (Sunday, 2/8/04)
Currency volatility is a threat to global economic growth, according to finance officials attending a G7 meeting. Here's more from Glenn Somerville in Boca Raton, Florida.

Why there are so many bargains at Wal-Mart (Sunday, 2/8/04)
There's certainly no labor shortage in China. Peter Goodman and Philip Pan report from Shenzhen on pay and working conditions for those who produce products for America's large retailers.

Fox's uninvited guests (Sunday, 2/8/04)
Two-thousand pensioners took their demands for the return of money they say is owed them to them to Mexican President Vicente Fox's ranch.

Hourly workers fear exemption from overtime (Sunday, 2/8/04)
The Arizona Republic's Yvette Armendariz reports on the likely winners and losers if proposed overtime changes go into effect.

Your cheating heart (Sunday, 2/8/04)
Anne Stephenson has been reading David Callahan's new book, The Cheating Culture and finds it depressing. Cheating has become more socially acceptable, apparently, as increasing numbers of Americans participate in the nation's own special kind of corruption.

When two aren't enough (Sunday, 2/8/04)
Here's more on that new and influential book by Elizabeth Warren and Amelia Warren Tyagi, The Two-Income Trap: Why Middle-Class Mothers & Fathers Are Going Broke.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: EUR-Lex (Sunday, 2/8/04)
EUR-Lex presents itself as the portal to European union law.

Senate Democrats block pension bill compromise (Saturday, 2/7/04)
Senate Democrats are blocking the formation of a conference committee that would attempt to work out a compromise between House and Senate versions of a bill intended to save corporations billions of dollars in pension costs.

Slowing productivity may mean more hiring (Saturday, 2/7/04)
The reduction in productivity growth suggests that employers are getting about as much as they can get out of current workers, and that hiring of new employees will be picking up.

Frist opposes changes to new Medicare law (Saturday, 2/7/04)
There is no shortage of critics of the new Medicare law and no shortage of proposals for changing it. However, Senate Majority Leader Frist doesn't want changes this year. Instead, he will concentrate on limiting awards in medical malpractice cases.

If you're over 50, Home Depot may be looking for you (Saturday, 2/7/04)
Home Depot plans to hire 35,000 workers during 2004, and is forming an alliance with AARP, which will train prospective workers and help them apply for positions in the company's 1,700 stores.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: Schuster's Gainsharing Articles (Saturday, 2/7/04)
Former Syracuse University Professor Michael Schuster is Managing Partner of Competitive Human Resources Strategies. For many years, Dr. Schuster has been a recognized expert on human resources and compensation strategies. Here is his collection of articles on "gainsharing."

Fewer new jobs than expected (Friday, 2/6/04)
January was a better month for job creation than December, certainly, but experts had expected more than the 112,000 new jobs created last month. Nonetheless, the unemployment rate dropped to 5.6 percent in January, which was the lowest in two years.

The world's largest countries may be on target for reducing poverty (Friday, 2/6/04)
China and India may make sufficient progress in reducing poverty rates within their own countries to enable the entire region to meet UN goals by 2015.

Mystery in Arizona (Friday, 2/6/04)
Arizona's population has been growing, but its workforce has been shrinking. At least some of that is causing head-scratching among economists. Here's more from Jonathan Higuera of the Arizona Republic.

Cigna loses members, cuts jobs (Friday, 2/6/04)
The big health insurer needs to cut $300 million in yearly operating expenses. Three-thousand jobs will be sliced as part of the effort.

Unscreened screeners (Friday, 2/6/04)
A new report from the Department of Homeland Security finds that the Transportation Security Administration's lax policies have allowed thousands of people to work as airport security screeners without having undergone thorough background checks, including 85 convicted felons.

Group sales (Friday, 2/6/04)
Job seekers are gathering together in groups in order to attempt to sell themselves to employers. Amy Shafer has more from Lenexa, Kansas.

Good manners pay off at work (Friday, 2/6/04)
It's not easy to be effective in work settings if other people feel like running the other way when they see you coming. The Houston Chronicle's L. M. Sixel tells about the importance of good manners.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: The Population Research Center (Friday, 2/6/04)
The Population Research Center at the National Opinion Research Center and the University of Chicago is one of the world's leading centers for the study of social organization and demography.

Fourth-quarter productivity declines (Thursday, 2/5/04)
Not only did GDP growth proceed at a spectacular rate during the third quarter of 2003, worker productivity hit 9.5 percent as well. However, the fourth quarter was a different matter. The rate of growth slowed, and so did the productivity increase.

Meanwhile, the latest data on jobless claims show an increase, even though the manufacturing and service sectors showed strength during the end of 2003 and the beginning of 2004, respectively.

Shrinking retirement benefits (Thursday, 2/5/04)
Workers who expect their retirement benefits to be cut seem to have accurate expectations. A new survey from Towers Perrin finds that three out of four employers either have cut them or intend to.

Where are America's working poor? (Thursday, 2/5/04)
They can be found anywhere in the country, but a new study finds the heaviest concentration in the rural South.

The limitations of merit pay (Thursday, 2/5/04)
After giving merit pay a try, many Japanese companies are returning to seniority-based systems. Here's an explanation from Tokyo's Asahi Shimbun.

Who benefits from offshore outsourcing? (Thursday, 2/5/04)
Participants in a hi-tech conference in Bombay hear a UK government official and scholar from a major U.S. libertarian think tank say that outsourcing IT jobs is a good thing, even for the United States. Meanwhile, Michelle Kessler writes about the Indian tech boom that is being fueled by U.S. tech growth and the shipping of new jobs to the world's second-most-populous country.

MYTOWN offers a different perspective to Boston's poor kids (Thursday, 2/5/04)
Elizabeth Lund reports on how leading walking tour helps the young tour guides while informing and entertaining tourists.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: Restoring Fiscal Sanity (Thursday, 2/5/04)
Restoring Fiscal Sanity is a 114-page report from the Brookings Institution on three principal ways to balance the federal budget.

The Bush budget goes to Congress (Monday, 2/2/04)
During recent years, fewer copies of the budget will fit on an eighteen-wheeler for transport, and the numbers have become more impressive too. The latest White House budget calls for $2.4 trillion in spending, $521 billion more than the government expects to take in. So far, inflation has not become a problem, but, as the economy builds along with more private-sector demand for capital, the big deficit will mean that government will be competing with business for available capital, and that is likely to mean higher interest rates in order to head off inflation, and that is likely to tap the brakes a bit on the big American economic locomotive.

Among the notable items in the budget is the greater amount that the Administration expects the Medicare changes to cost. Many Democrats are saying that it amounts to "bait and switch" on the part of the White House, but the Administration is blaming Congress for underestimating Medicare costs. Here's more from Edmund Andrews in the nation's capital about what may become a major issue in the presidential campaign.

January's manufacturing boost (Monday, 2/2/04)
The Institute for Supply Management's research concludes that the U.S. manufacturing sector continued to grow last month, reaching its highest level in 20 years. Other reports also reflect growing strength in the American economy.

Perceived as offensive, they go on the offensive (Monday, 2/2/04)
The world's largest corporation is also the world's most frequently-sued company, which has led its management to conclude that they have a PR problem. Emily Kaiser writes from Chicago that Wal-Mart is beginning a "full-court press" to repair its corporate image.

Safeway's head loses popularity (Monday, 2/2/04)
Labor leaders haven't like Safeway Chairman Burd all that much all along, and their animosity has been exacerbated by Southern California's lingering grocery strike/lockout. However, as Michael Liedtke reports, the Chairman is losing popularity on Wall Street now as well.

Another look at hi-tech and productivity (Monday, 2/2/04)
Labor productivity has been on the increase in the U.S. economy. How much of the reason has to do with fewer people working longer and harder and how much is due to high-technology? It's been an ongoing debate for years. Here's some of the latest from Steve Lohr.

More from the O'Neill book (Monday, 2/2/04)
Until it was pushed off the front page by a hundred dozen other stories, Ron Suskin's book about Paul O'Neill's departure from Treasury captured public attention for a while. Many persons saw it as an attempt to "lop a grenade" into President Bush's re-election effort. However, Daniel Gross reports that the book also contains news of interest to people who care more about economics than politics. For instance, it appears that the Department of Treasury has developed a means of making economic forecasts in real time without the delays to which we have become accustomed.

Are you old enough for the job? (Monday, 2/2/04)
Our question is not addressed to those in the early years of life, but, rather, to those who have far more past than future. Rob Wherry of Forbes writes about older folks who are being called back to head major sports franchises and companies.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: Grads Online (Monday, 2/2/04)
Grads Online provides the results of surveys showing where graduates at various levels and in various majors end up after graduation. It is a service of Australia's Grad Link.

The new Bush budget (Sunday, 2/1/04)
President Bush is scheduled to release his new budget tomorrow. Here's an advance look at some of its main features.

What's really happening with the U.S. job market? (Sunday, 2/1/04)
At a time when most indicators are saying that the American economy is revving up, job creation still lags. However, Barbara Hagenbaugh says sorting out what really is going on isn't easy. David Ivanovich agrees, and reports that some officials seem to think that existing data are somehow concealing job growth. Traditional measures may not give an accurate picture of the new economy. In fact, as Andrea Hopkins reports, a major part of the answer to the puzzle may be the increased number of people who don't have jobs, but who ARE working. Here's Ms. Hopkins' report on the growth self-employment in the United States.

Indian officials try to head off outsourcing legislation (Sunday, 2/1/04)
Edward Luce in New Delhi reports that senior ministers of the Indian government intend to try to persuade U.S. government officials that U.S. Senate legislation that would prevent some types of federal work from being sent overseas is "unfair."

Confused yet? Wait until you started doing your taxes (Sunday, 2/1/04)
Filing chaos may be in store because of the latest tax changes. Here's more from Russ Wiles of the Arizona Republic.

Today's NewWork News Web Tip: Career Information (Sunday, 2/1/04)
Here are the various ways career information is presented by the University of Texas' Career Exploration Center.

Here are NewWork News stories from previous months

Home

---

Copyright © 1995-2007 Gary Johnson Communications. All rights reserved. BraveNewWorkWorld, NewWork, NewWork News, Careers in the NewWork World, WITNE, and WITNE: Women in the New Economy are trademarks of Gary Johnson Communication.