Labour

Civil unrest puts U.S. economy in a vicious circle

29 May 2020

Violence broke out in Minnesota after an African American man died in police custody. Minorities are disproportionately represented in U.S. Covid-19 deaths, and job losses are hitting these groups hard. Unrest may make reopening tough, making the country’s wealth gaps even worse.

Stimulus blunder Down Under sends Big Data alert

25 May 2020

Australia overfunded an $85 bln wage subsidy programme due to excessively pessimistic epidemic models and data entry errors. Canberra thought 6.5 mln workers needed help, nearly twice the real number. Others will find it similarly difficult to cut through the noise.

Ugly U.S. jobs data hides as much as it reveals

8 May 2020

The awful April report brings the jobless rate to almost 15%. But just as February’s super low 3.5% was misleading, Friday’s figure leaves much out. Stimulus alters the income story, and what matters most is how and whether demand returns to the economy.

Uber, Lyft need more than cuts to fill profit tank

7 May 2020

The U.S. ride-hailing firms are slashing staff amid a drop in their core business. Uber is in better shape with more revenue streams like food delivery. But lowering expenses only goes so far. Reductions can also hurt their long-term future if autonomous-vehicle investments fall.

Critical workers hold keys to higher minimum pay

6 May 2020

U.S. ambulance drivers make under $15 per hour, EMTs under $20. And “essential” retail staff make about $13. These and others indispensable in a lockdown and at risk on the Covid-19 front line are under-rewarded. Any post-virus rethink of supply chains must also include wages.

Virus state aid needs taper to avoid tantrum

5 May 2020

As governments lift restrictions, they face tough choices about weaning companies and workers off public support. Different industries require different timetables. Withdrawals should also be phased. The state can’t help indefinitely, but a sudden break would be too big a shock.

The Exchange: Blue-collar China

4 May 2020

Pandemic and recession are making the lower strata of the labour force crankier than they’ve ever been. Author Dexter Roberts explains to Pete Sweeney how Beijing is struggling to manage worker dissatisfaction, and points to rising economic costs and political risks.

British Airways jobs cull sends EU bailout Mayday

29 Apr 2020

The airline owned by IAG is axing a quarter of its staff amid the virus fallout, rather than seek state aid. The move highlights the limits of using government funds in the face of wrenching change. It’s ominous for Paris and Berlin, who may dole out $17 bln of taxpayer cash.

Viewsroom: Freebies no more

16 Apr 2020

Breakingviews columnists check in from home in New York, San Francisco and Hong Kong to discuss disappearing Silicon Valley perks like free meals and booze, office activism at tech firms, the mystery of China’s 20 million lost mobile-phone subscribers and an ascendant TikTok.

Corona Capital: Lufthansa, JPMorgan, Foursquare

7 Apr 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Lufthansa parks hopes of a quick airline-industry recovery in the hanger; JPMorgan skirts close to committing an early earnings faux pas; and Foursquare checks into the M&A market.

UK is lab rat for ill-timed migrant experiment

19 Feb 2020

A new immigration system will from next year prioritise skilled workers. Ideally, this would boost pay. But companies may struggle to pass costs to consumers and can’t expand without the right staff. Brakes on growth will be the last thing Britain needs if EU trade talks sour.

Tesco Christmas furore flags limits of ESG crusade

23 Dec 2019

The UK grocer may have sold greeting cards made by prisoners in China. The scandal shows how even firms that appear to embrace their environmental, social and governance duties struggle with forced labour. Stock prices suggest there’s not much pressure from investors for change.

Uber and labor groups could share retirement ride

12 Dec 2019

Usually at odds, the car-hailing app and workers' rights advocates might both get behind legislation that helps provide a safety net for gig-economy workers. Making pension plans easier to provide and to access would chip away at the quarter of U.S. adults who lack such savings.

Review: An economic paradigm for ordinary people

6 Dec 2019

Nicholas Lemann’s “Transaction Man” shows how the post-1980 move from stable institutions to a deal-oriented economy benefited the rich and disempowered the rest. Active interest groups and pluralism could redress the balance. So would smaller businesses and lower overheads.

GM takes FCA to task over past and future slights

21 Nov 2019

Detroit’s top carmaker claims Fiat Chrysler bribed union officials to get a better deal than GM in contract talks. CEO Mary Barra’s crew even called out her almost-merger partner posthumously. The lawsuit smacks of payback, but its goal must be to gum up Fiat’s deal with Peugeot.

GM strike deal brings less relief than expected

16 Oct 2019

That’s because the month-long walkout didn’t hurt much. Union politics, chest-thumping by both sides and shareholder complacency prolonged talks that should have been more or less a formality. Workers suffered, but investors didn’t care much. GM got lucky with the timing.

Viewsroom: General Motors strike runs on hot air

10 Oct 2019

Workers downed tools over three weeks ago, despite last-minute concessions by the U.S. carmaker. Job-security fears are a sticking point. So is the union’s need to prove its worth after a kickbacks scandal. Plus: U.S. basketball plays smart defense on China’s Hong Kong backlash.

GE makes its own old age a bit more comfortable

7 Oct 2019

The indebted $75 bln U.S. conglomerate’s halt on defined-benefit pensions will make 20,000 employees’ retirements less flush. CEO Larry Culp’s transfer of value from workers to investors is awkward, but necessary – it makes GE’s debt more predictable as well as more manageable.

College football learns to play by market rules

3 Oct 2019

Young U.S. athletes generate $1 bln in revenue for their governing body – yet their rewards are tightly capped. When demand is high and the supply of elite talent low, as in football, something has to give. A new California law is a nod to what other industries realized long ago.

GM investors are not showing up for work, either

30 Sep 2019

Striking employees downed tools 15 days ago, and the $53 billion carmaker has lost more money than was initially priced in. The industrial action ought to have been easy to resolve. Now shareholders are ignoring it just as it’s starting to bite financially.