Tag Archives: employment

Biden To Order $15 Wage For Federal Contract Workers

CNN reports: Two months after his effort to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour ran into the Senate parliamentarian buzz saw, President Joe Biden is set to use his executive powers to hike the pay of hundreds of thousands of federal contract workers. The President is expected to issue an executive order on Tuesday that increases contract …

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Alabama Amazon Workers Reject Bid To Unionize

CBS News reports: Amazon has beaten back a historic effort by workers to form a collective bargaining unit in a warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama, with about two-thirds of ballots cast in the union election voting against joining the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, according to a tally by the National Labor Relations Board. The final tally showed 1,798 votes …

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Amazon Sorry For Denying “Peeing In Bottles” Reports

Reuters reports: Amazon.com Inc has apologized to U.S. Representative Mark Pocan, admitting to scoring an “own goal” in its initial denial of his suggestion that its drivers were sometimes forced to urinate in bottles during their delivery rounds. “We know that drivers can and do have trouble finding restrooms because of traffic or sometimes rural routes, and this has been …

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US Added 916K Jobs In March, Unemployment At 6%

NBC News reports: The U.S. economy added 916,000 jobs last month and the unemployment rate fell to 6 percent, in the strongest indication yet that the labor market is finally working its way back to pre-pandemic norms as the number of vaccinations continues to rise. The hiring and employment data, released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, firmly beat …

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Lawsuit Alleges Restaurant Fired Employee For Being Pagan: “Your Hours Are Being Cut Until You Find God”

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports: While Tammy McCoy was outside taking a break, according to the complaint, assistant general manager Kerri Ann Show said she was Christian and then asked McCoy, “what religion are you?” McCoy, who was surprised by the question but answered because Show was her supervisor, responded, “I’m Pagan,” the lawsuit said. “Show made a face and immediately …

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Remote Work To End For NYC Employees On May 3rd

The New York Times reports: Mayor Bill de Blasio’s decision to bring the nation’s largest municipal work force back to the office represents a significant turnabout for a city that served as the national epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, coming to symbolize the perils of living in densely packed global capitals. The move is meant to broadcast that New York …

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Goldman Sachs Forecasts Jobless Rate Falling To 4.1%

The Hill reports: The unemployment rate could drop to 4.1 percent or even lower this year, according to a Goldman Sachs forecast released late Sunday night. Ultimately, the bank forecasts that unemployment will drop to 3.2 percent by 2024. If that were to happen, it would surpass the 50-year record set in the Trump administration, notching a significant win for …

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Biden Ousts All Ten Of Trump’s “Union Busters”

Slate reports: On Tuesday, Joe Biden demanded the resignations of all 10 of Donald Trump’s appointees to the Federal Service Impasses Panel, a powerful labor relations board, in a major victory for federal unions. Eight members resigned, and two were fired after refusing to step down. Trump’s appointees—a group of partisan anti-labor activists—had hobbled federal unions for years, sabotaging their …

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New Unemployment Claims Soar In Trump’s Final Week

The Associated Press reports: The number of people seeking unemployment aid soared last week to 965,000, the most since late August and a sign that the resurgent virus has likely escalated layoffs. The latest figures for jobless claims, issued Thursday by the Labor Department, remain at levels never seen until the virus struck. Before the pandemic, weekly applications typically numbered …

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Final Jobs Report For Trump Admin Is Worst In Months

NBC News reports: The economy shed 140,000 jobs in December, a clear indication that the pandemic’s chokehold on economic activity strengthened in the final weeks of last year. The unemployment rate held steady at 6.7 percent. In the final jobs report of 2020, Friday’s monthly employment snapshot from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows a labor market teetering on the …

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Labor Dept Reports 803K New Jobless Claims For Week

The Wall Street Journal reports: U.S. jobless claims fell to 803,000 last week, a retreat from a three-month high amid broader signs of a slowing economic recovery. The latest data came as states and local municipalities impose fresh restrictions on social and business activity to combat a surge in coronavirus cases. Other parts of the economy have shown signs of …

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New Jobless Claims Surge To 885,000 For Week

Bloomberg News reports: Applications for U.S. unemployment benefits unexpectedly jumped to the highest level in three months, suggesting the labor market’s recovery is faltering amid the surge in Covid-19 cases and widening business closures. Initial jobless claims in regular state programs rose by 23,000 to 885,000 in the week ended Dec. 12, Labor Department data showed Thursday. On an unadjusted …

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Labor Dept Reports Surge In Jobless Claims For Week

Bloomberg News reports: Applications for U.S. unemployment benefits surged last week and exceeded most estimates, suggesting that widening business shutdowns to curb the pandemic are spurring fresh job losses. Initial jobless claims in regular state programs rose by 137,000 to 853,000 in the week ended Dec. 5, Labor Department data showed Thursday. On an unadjusted basis, the figure increased by …

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Labor Dept Rule Allows Anti-LGBTQ Discrimination By Federal Contractors On The Basis Of “Religious Liberty”

Slate reports: On Monday, the Trump administration finalized a sweeping new regulation that allows federal contractors to discriminate against racial and religious minorities, women, and especially LGBTQ people in the name of protecting “religious liberty.” It effectively abolishes critical workplace protections for these contractors that have been in place for decades, reframing religious freedom as a near-limitless license to discriminate. …

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Labor Dept Reports 712K New Jobless Claims For Week

MarketWatch reports: New applications for U.S. unemployment benefits fell in late November for the first time in three weeks, probably due in part to the Thanksgiving holiday. The number of people applying for benefits, however, is still quite high and the latest decline is unlikely to dispel fresh worries about rising layoffs and a slowdown in hiring after a record …

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Michigan Funeral Home Settles Lawsuit That Led To SCOTUS Ruling For LGBTQ Employment Protections

The Detroit News reports: A federal judge has signed off on a settlement between the estate of Aimee Stephens and the Metro Detroit funeral home that fired her in 2013 after she came out to her boss as transgender. U.S. District Judge Sean Cox on Monday approved the terms of the settlement between the estate of Stephens, who died in …

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Disney Increases Coming Employee Layoffs To 32,000

The Street reports: Walt Disney plans to lay off a total of 32,000 employees in the first half of 2021, a further reduction in its workforce as the Covid-19 pandemic and severe drop-off in visitors to its theme parks continues to slam its business. The layoffs, revealed in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing on Wednesday, are 4,000 more than …

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New Jobless Claims Spike To 778,000 For Week

Bloomberg News reports: Applications for U.S. state unemployment benefits unexpectedly jumped to the highest level in a month, underscoring a fragile labor market at risk of faltering as coronavirus cases soar. Initial jobless claims in regular state programs increased by 30,000 to 778,000 in the week ended Nov. 21, according to Labor Department data Wednesday. Without adjustments for seasonal fluctuations, …

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Labor Dept Reports Spike In New Jobless Claims

The Wall Street Journal reports: The number of applications for unemployment benefits rose sharply last week, indicating continued challenges for the U.S. economic recovery as coronavirus infections increased around the country. Initial claims for jobless benefits, a proxy for layoffs, rose to a seasonally adjusted 742,000 last week, up from the 711,000 filed a week earlier, the Labor Department said …

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Labor Dept Reports 751K New Jobless Claims For Week

CNBC reports: The number of first-time unemployment-benefits filers fell to the lowest level in the pandemic, declining for a second straight week, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Initial weekly U.S. jobless claims came in at 751,000 for the week ending Oct. 24, down 40,000 from the previous week. Economists polled by Dow Jones expected initial jobless claims to come in …

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