Economy

Resolute Forest Products – 240 Layoffs in Fort Frances

About 240 employees will be out of work by the end of the month due to a partial shutdown of the Resolute Forest Products facility in Fort Frances, Ont. The Montreal-based company announced the indefinite idling of the kraft mill and paper machine number 5 at Fort Frances on Tuesday, citing challenging market conditions.  A … Continue reading →

California / College Grads Taking Low Paying Jobs rose by 60,000 from 2006 to 2011

The number of California college graduates working in low-paying jobs rose by 60,000 from 2006 to 2011 according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Throughout the state, 260,000 recent college grads under the age of 30 are working on the front lines of food service and retail industries where historically those jobs have gone to workers … Continue reading →

EU / Education reform key to growth

Europe’s governments must improve their education systems to help kick-start jobs and growth, the European Commission has said. The Commission has no direct role in national education policies but agreed a “strategic framework for European co-operation in education and training” with member states in 2009. Now Education and Culture Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou wants to monitor … Continue reading →

Greece / IMF apologizes for asking to sack 22,000 people by mistake

The IMF has apologized for a mistaken email demanding Greece dismisses thousands more civil servants than the earlier agreed lay off of 27,000 employees. The letter spurred concerns in the government that more layoffs will be demanded. The email arrived at the Greek Ministry of Finance from the IMF Representative in Athens Bob Traa before … Continue reading →

Unemployment Insurance / Reduces labor force exit among the unemployed rather than changes reemployment rates

A paper by Jesse Rothstein, a professor of public policy and economics from the University of California Berkeley has made making a lot of noice on the Web. Jesse Rothstein who is also former chief economist at the Department of Labor, provides up-to-date estimates of the ‘generousity’ effect of unemployment insurance benefits (in terms of duration, % of wages replaced, or … 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

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 →

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 →

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 →

US / Raise the Minimum Wage

If Democrats/liberals really wanted to help the poor, a good place to start would be raising the minimum wage.  The exact amount is different depending on where one gets their information, but based on what I’ve read, if we took the minimum wage in 1968 and indexed it to inflation, these workers would make roughly … Continue reading →

US / Losing the Race for Entrepreneurial Talent ? (Video)

In 2005, immigrant entrepreneurs launched 52% of all startups in Silicon Valley. But today, the number has dropped to 44%, and America is not only losing the opportunity to create new jobs but also losing its competitive edge, argues Vivek Wadhwa in his short, passionately argued book, The Immigrant Exodus: Why America Is Losing the … Continue reading →