Figures released today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics provide less encouragement than today’s GDP report. Total compensation increased by only 1.5 percent in 2009 (without adjusting for inflation) – the lowest increase on record. If a turnaround has begun, workers are not feeling it in their wallets. However, this …
Candidate Obama campaigned as a fierce opponent of special interests that use their clout and connections to secure special favors from the government. As President, Obama has made it clear that he only objected to particular special interests getting handouts. Obama happily gives some liberal special interests loopholes and exemptions …
New data released today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows why a jobs recovery remains far off. This report, the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS), will receive much less press attention than last Friday’s unemployment report. However its figures hold the key to understanding why unemployment has …
When does Washington consider a successful small business a problem to be dealt with? When that small business successfully competes against unionized firms. Then it needs to be tied down with expensive red tape until it is no longer so successful. Say what? Members of Congress routinely extol the praises …
Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) has placed a hold on President Obama’s nominee for Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), Erroll Southers. Since the attempted underwear bombing, many pundits have attacked DeMint for this on the grounds that the agency needs permanent leadership. DeMint should ignore these criticisms: his actions …
With over 15 million Americans out of work Congress is searching for ways to reduce unemployment. The latest idea, put forward by Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) is “work sharing.” Under work-sharing, companies reduce the hours (and pay) of all their employees instead of laying off some workers and having the …
Organized labor has demonstrated why workers should spend some time this Thanksgiving giving thanks for the secret ballot. The Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and the National Union of Healthcare Workers (NUHW) “have been sparring for the right to represent 10,000 home health-care workers” in California. The SEIU has not …
Unemployment has risen above 10 percent and no one in Washington seems to understand what is going on. Yesterday, a little noticed release from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) shed important light onto the job situation. The BLS’s Business Employment Dynamics (BED) program uses unemployment insurance (UI) records to …
Who do the words “union members” bring to mind? United Auto Workers building cars in Detroit? Teamsters truckers hauling freight? Steel workers in Pennsylvania? Not any more. Newly released numbers show that the actual face of today’s union movement is the teller at your local Department of Motorized Vehicles. Preliminary …
