Michel Cournoyer

Unemployment Insurance / An Antipoverty Program

In addition to the tax increases and broad federal spending cuts (known as “sequestration”) scheduled to take effect at the end of this year, the emergency unemployment benefits system is also expected to come to an end. It doesn’t get as much attention as the defense cuts or the tax increases, but the end of … Continue reading →

Ohio / Minimum wage to increase in January

The Ohio Department of Commerce announced that minimum wage will increase by 15 cents, from $7.70 to $7.85 an hour, beginning Jan. 1. That means that in less than two months, Ohio’s minimum wage will reach 60 cents above the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. For employees who receive tips, the new minimum … Continue reading →

Minimum Wage – The Debate in Video

Montreal / Yellow Media hiring 170 digital staff

Yellow Media plans to create about 170 new Montreal-based information and digital technology positions as the directories publisher transitions to an online media company. But Yellow Media also said about 125 clerical positions will be moved to other company offices across Canada from Montreal, as the company reorganizes various office locations into specialized teams. “We … Continue reading →

Canada / Primer Harper: Lack of skilled labour threatens the economy

Producing more skilled workers, scientists and engineers is the key to Canada’s future prosperity, Prime Minister Stephen Harper says. His analysis may have surprised a Canada-United States business group in Ottawa to talk about cross-border irritants, international trade negotiations, stalled pipelines and the rise of China as an economic power. “This is in fact in … Continue reading →

Flexible retirement

Mickie Ashman has what she regards as the ideal arrangement at work as she nears retirement. The 66-year-old Calgary human-resources co-ordinator has the security of a permanent job at AltaGas Ltd., an energy infrastructure firm, but she has been able to reduce her work hours from full-time to a more comfortable three days a week. … Continue reading →

Estonian Air / To lay off half its employees

Estonian Air announced it will lay off nearly half of its personnel. The company said in a press release that 146 of its 318 employees will be let go. That includes 88 onboard crew members, including pilots, and others from support and administrative staff. Due to the need to adjust operations in accordance to the … Continue reading →

Indonesia / Minimum Wage to Rise 44%

A 44 percent rise in the Jakarta minimum wage has prompted a major employer organization to warn of mass layoffs as companies grapple with the increased production costs, and led analysts to suggest that a major increase in productivity was needed to justify the hike. Employer groups have also expressed fears that the new Jakarta … Continue reading →

UK / Sainsbury’s to create 10,000 jobs

Supermarket giant Sainsbury’s is to create 10,000 jobs over the next three years as it continues to open new stores. The new roles will be in the firm’s smaller convenience and Local stores, which have seen a big increase in business this year. The news was announced as Sainsbury’s opened its 500th convenience store in … Continue reading →

UK / Standard Life cuts 139 jobs

Standard Life is cutting 139 jobs following the restructure of its UK and Europe business. Affected divisions include adviser and investments and workplace, customer and marketing and UK IT and change. Standard Life says the proposed job cuts will deliver better customer service through a single point of accountability and clearer alignment between the company’s … Continue reading →

London / Tech City Apprenticeship Programme aiming at 500 unemployed young people

Leading companies in Tech City, Europe’s fastest growing technology cluster, are launching a major Tech City Apprenticeship programme for unemployed young Londoners. The Tech City Apprenticeship programme will give 500 unemployed young people the opportunity to work in London’s most exciting and high-profile digital companies, including Google Campus, Facebook, TechHub, Moo.com, Poke London, The Trampery … Continue reading →

US / Food stamp enrollment up even if unemployment rate declines

From October 2009 to October 2012 the unemployment rate has declined from 10.2 percent to 7.9 percent. In that same time frame, nearly ten million new recipients have been added to the food stamp rolls, according to government data analyzed by the Republican committee staff. “Spending on the food stamp program has increased every single … Continue reading →

Unemployment Insurance / Claims fell last week but still dancing above 400,000 amid Sandy

Several states were still reporting an increase in claims because of Hurricane Sandy An analyst from the Labor Department said several states were still reporting an increase in claims because of Hurricane Sandy, the mammoth storm that slammed into the East Coast on Oct. 29. The storm left millions of homes and businesses without electricity, … Continue reading →

Internet Job Search / Cuts Unemployment Duration by 25%

“While the Internet has been found to reduce trading frictions in a number of other markets, existing research has failed to detect such an effect in the labor market” write Peter Kuhn and Hani Mansour in Is Internet Job Search Still Ineffective? on iza.org.(Adapted Choosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor to follow) No more… In their … Continue reading →

Canada / New EI benefit for parents of critically ill or injured children to come ?

The Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development, today marked the unanimous adoption of the Helping Families in Need Act by the House of Commons. The Bill will now be studied by the Senate before receiving Royal Assent, the final step in the legislative process. “The Harper Government is delivering on its … Continue reading →