workers

Why Biden must cut Netanyahu off: His Policies are Destroying Gaza, Killing Hostages, and Widening the War to the West Bank

Oakland, Ca. (Special to Informed Comment; Feature) – With the enormous weekend demonstrations in Israel, and Monday’s general strike called for by the Histadrut, the massive collective of trade unions in Israel; the pressure for PM Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu to resign is dramatically escalating. By demanding that Bibi negotiate a deal to release the remaining […]

Conspiracy Theories

Could Trump win again? Roots of MAGA Paranoia and the Politics of Fear

Arthur Goldwag

Brooklyn, NY (Special to Informed Comment; featured) – The cover of my The Politics of Fear: The Peculiar Persistence of American Paranoia features a photograph of a bearded, fur-clad man with a horned helmet, tattoos and face paint. On January 6, 2021, Jacob Anthony Chansley, aka the Q Shaman, stood at the House Speakers’ dais […]

unions

10 Victories of the American Worker in 2023

Inequality.org

By Sarah Anderson | – ( Inequality.org ) – Looking for something positive to celebrate on New Year’s Eve? Consider lifting a glass to the hardworking people behind these inspiring victories of 2023. 1. The ‘Year of the Strike’ More than half a million American workers walked off the job this year. In October, companies […]

Democratic Party

Rep. Rashida Tlaib joins with UAW to call for Gaza Ceasefire

Michigan Advance

By Jon King | – U.S. Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.) speaking at Ceasefire Now rally in Washington D.C. 12/14/23 ( Michigan Advance ) – U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit) on Thursday joined with United Auto Workers (UAW) President Shawn Fain in Washington, D.C., in calling for an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in the […]

Corporations

Meeting Union Demands would be a Win-Win for Automakers

OtherWords

By Sonali Kolhatkar ( Otherwords.org) – The United Auto Workers (UAW), a union of nearly 150,000 workers at America’s “Big Three” automakers, are on strike. On the face of it, UAW’s demands sound audacious. They’re calling for a 46 percent pay raise and a four-day workweek, among other things. But in the broader context of […]

Climate Crisis

Labor Day: Is Biden’s Green Energy IRA the most Pro-Worker Legislation in Decades?

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Inflation Reduction Act, President Biden’s signature piece of legislation that was passed with no Republican support, contains $369 billion for the green energy transition. Since much of this funding leverages corporate and individual investments, its impact will be in the trillions of dollars. Given the dire climate crisis we […]

Inequality

On Labor Day: Low-Wage Employers say they Have no Money for Raises, but spent $341 Billion on Stock Buybacks

Inequality.org

By Sarah Anderson ( Inequality.org ) – In response to strikes and union organizing drives, corporate leaders routinely insist that they simply lack the wherewithal to raise employee pay. And yet top executives seem to have little trouble finding resources for enriching themselves and wealthy shareholders. In 2021 and 2022, S&P 500 corporations spent record […]

China

Green Jobs take off in China after Beijing’s Carbon Neutrality Pledge

China Dialogue

Jiang Mengnan ( China Dialogue ) – Around the world, tech and finance companies have been laying staff off. In 2022, tech firms’ payrolls fell by 164,000 employees, with a further 166,000 jobs cut in the first quarter of 2023, according to tracking platform Layoffs.fyi. In China, youth unemployment is also rising, hitting 20% this […]

Climate Crisis

The Ugly Side of American Exceptionalism: Refusing to Play by the Rules

Rebecca Gordon

( Tomdispatch.com ) – In 1963, the summer I turned 11, my mother had a gig evaluating Peace Corps programs in Egypt and Ethiopia. My younger brother and I spent most of that summer in France. We were first in Paris with my mother before she left for North Africa, then with my father and […]