Working Life

    The answer to this question would appear to be obvious. But, it needs constant reinforcing–as you will see from the debate (if you can call it that) last night between yours truly and Larry Kudlow and a stooge from the right wing. It’s almost laughable and entertaining–if the consequences weren’t so dire. The subject […]

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   Those bills are also called the so-called "free trade" deals with Colombia, South Korea and Panama. The president is making a concerted push to get these bills rammed through Congress by August. Which just boggles the mind.    Let’s focus today mostly on Colombia, a place that is a dangerous place for trade unionists, […]

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    Excuse me while I yawn and shrug at the same time. Here we go again–a sign that nothing truly has changed and we can just sit back and prepare for the next financial implosion. The SEC has agreed to let J.P. Morgan off with a slap on the wrist to the tune of $153 […]

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   No one should be against fairer election rules–well, no one outside the corporate, wing-nut world. But, we should take the new proposed NLRB rules with a grain of salt: The proposed amendments are intended to reduce unnecessary litigation, streamline pre- and post-election procedures, and facilitate the use of electronic communications and document filing. The […]

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    Keep our eye on the ball. I’m sure the Waltons are doing a great dance over in Bentonville, Arkansas in light of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling blocking a class-action suit against the companythat, had it been successful, would have likely cost the company billions of dollars in damages. But, let’s be clear: Wal-Mart […]

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   This past Friday, I was standing on the Stone Arch Bridge in Minneapolis at a Laborers rally to push for massive infrastructure investment as a way to create jobs, and rebuild the country. In an obvious way and a less obvious way, standing on the bridge spanning the Mississippi gives one a clear understanding […]

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   Via the International Labor Organization: The new ILO standards set out that domestic workers around the world who care for families and households, must have the same basic labour rights as those available to other workers: reasonable hours of work, weekly rest of at least 24 consecutive hours, a limit on in-kind payment, clear […]

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   I really think the people who talk about "recovery" live in a world not inhabited by most Americans: The economic recovery that started in mid-2009 is losing steam. The manufacturing sector, once the driver of the recovery, stumbled in May as companies cut back on production and hiring. A persistent slowdown in hiring is […]

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   Look, it isn’t surprising. The entire financial community wants nothing to do with stronger oversight–even though stronger oversight would help prevent another meltdown, though, if you are a CEO of a bank or a big financial institution, the lesson you’ve learned from the last go-around is that you won’t suffer personally…    So, they’ll […]

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    A thought crossed my mind reading today’s Wall Street Journal, and I offer this thought to the vice-president: if you have the choice of continuing the entirely pointless exercise of fanning the flames of the phony debt and deficit "crisis" VERSUS fulfilling the more traditional daily role of vice presidents who are sent to […]

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