Downward Automobility

E.J. Dionne Jr. / Truthdig Feb 19, 2009 It makes sense to prop up ailing carmakers. Allowing GM and Chrysler to go bankrupt could be a triggering event that might make a very bad economy much worse. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

California Plans to Fire 20,000 Workers

Staff / Truthdig Feb 17, 2009 California has the biggest economy in the union, but the state is in a real hole. With major shortfalls and a $40 billion budget in legislative gridlock, Sacramento has laid off some workers, furloughed others and slashed wages. Now the governor is threatening to, er, terminate 20,000 more employees. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Slapping the Pay Cuffs on Execs

Staff / Truthdig Feb 4, 2009 Amending current TARP rules and regulations, President Obama is expected to put a $500,000 cap on executive salaries at companies that receive large amounts of bailout funds. It would mean major pay cuts for the likes of Bank of America CEO Kenneth Lewis, who took home more than $20 million in 2007. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

China Takes the Bronze in GDP

Staff / Truthdig Jan 15, 2009 After reconfiguring its output figures, China has finally found itself on the medal podium for gross domestic product, ousting Germany from its role as third largest economy in the world. China's economy has grown tenfold in the past 30 years, and its development, while marveled at, worries many environmental, human rights and labor activists. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

The Jobless Hold Their Breath

Staff / Truthdig Jan 5, 2009 President-elect Obama is still working out the nuts and bolts of his recovery (fingers crossed) package, but Obama advisers have disclosed that at least one proposal would expand benefits and compensation to the unemployed With the economic meltdown vaporizing more and more jobs, here's hoping Congress gets it done before February. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Wal-Mart’s $640 Million Sneeze

Staff / Truthdig Dec 24, 2008 Wal-Mart will pay as much as $640 million to settle 63 lawsuits around the country alleging that the retailer had exploited its workers. The payout could add up to less than 0.1 percent of the company's revenues this year. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Crippling the Auto Union Is Just a Warm-Up

Marie Cocco / Truthdig Dec 16, 2008 I must admit that when the danger of a global financial implosion became apparent in March, I did not understand how all those worthless Wall Street credit swaps really could be the fault of an overpaid union welder at an auto plant somewhere in Michigan. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Unions Aren’t the Problem

Marie Cocco / Truthdig Dec 9, 2008 As Congress and the White House lurch toward possible approval of a loan package for the crippled auto industry, we are undoubtedly in store for more union-bashing. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Obama Throws Support to Chicago Sit-In

Staff / Truthdig Dec 8, 2008 President-elect Barack Obama has added his voice to the chorus of encouragement for a group of Chicago workers who are sitting-in at their former factory. Obama said the workers, who have protested their way into the national spotlight, were "absolutely right" and "what's happening to them is reflective of what's happening across this economy." Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Warren I. Cohen on China’s ‘Factory Girls’

BLANK Dec 5, 2008 There’s a revolution underway in Chinese culture as young women flock from villages to factory employment in the cities, leaving traditional values behind. Dig deeper ( 6 Min. Read )

Breathing New Life Into Health Care

Marie Cocco / Truthdig Dec 4, 2008 Over the past 10 months, as the hemorrhage of jobs began to push the national unemployment rate toward its October level of 6.5 percent, about 3 million Americans were thrown off the insurance rolls or had their incomes fall so much that they became eligible for Medicaid or the State Children's Health Insurance Program. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Class Bigotry Mars Auto Debate

E.J. Dionne Jr. / Truthdig Dec 2, 2008 The auto industry bailout would have no chance of passing without the muscle of the Big Three's unionized work force. Yet you can't turn around without hearing someone trash autoworkers for the terrible crime of trying to earn a decent living. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )