ReportWire

Tag: labor

  • Foreign workers replace Palestinian labor in Israel, face hurdles

    [ad_1]

    Restructuring of work permits and recruitment policies is reshaping construction, agriculture, and services while raising concerns about long-term economic and social effects.

    After more than two years of war, Israel’s labor market is feeling the consequences, undergoing a striking transformation as longstanding employment patterns are reshaped by new policies, security developments, and shifting economic needs.

    One result of the war has been a sharp reduction in the number of Palestinian laborers permitted to enter Israel. Previously, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were allowed to work in Israel. That figure has fallen as Israel cites major security concerns and a push to wean itself from reliance on Palestinian workers.

    In response, authorities have expanded the entry of foreign workers, altering the composition of the workforce.

    For decades, Palestinian workers, mainly from areas in the West Bank controlled by the Palestinian Authority (PA), but also from Gaza, filled a large share of low-paid jobs in agriculture and construction.

    They worked through permits allocated and issued by Israel’s Population and Immigration Authority (PIBA) and by the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, the military unit responsible for implementing the government’s civilian and humanitarian efforts in the territories.

    An illustrative image of Palestinian laborers working on a construction project in Israel. (credit: Menahem Kahana/AFP via Getty Images)

    According to Kav LaOved, a nongovernmental organization focused on protecting workers’ rights in Israel, roughly 100,000 Palestinians were employed in Israel. Since October 2023, the entry of Palestinian workers has been cut to about 8,000, driven by heightened security restrictions and political tensions that have disrupted the labor market and major sectors such as construction.

    Data published by PIBA last week showed that almost 61,000 new work permits were issued to foreign workers in 2025 in an attempt to fill the widening labor gap, bringing the total number of foreign workers to 227,044.

    This new migrant workforce is employed not only in construction and agriculture, the traditional sectors of non-Israeli labor, but also increasingly in caregiving, trade, services, and renovation, roles previously held by Palestinian workers.

    Israelis have long been reluctant to fill many of these positions. Part of that reluctance stems from the high cost of living and the preference among many Israelis for higher-paying jobs over lower-paid occupations in sectors now staffed by foreign workers.

    A government decision in May 2024 sought to increase the number of foreign workers, raising the quota to 3.3% of the country’s population. For now, a shortfall of 100,000 workers remains.

    According to Moshe Nakash, director of the Foreign Workers Administration at PIBA, that quota could still rise.

    “There are large numbers of workers coming into Israel in an effort to fill the different quotas of each sector,” Nakash told The Media Line. “This is part of a great effort on our part to close the gap.”

    The recalibration of the workforce has been most acute in sectors heavily reliant on manual labor. Construction firms, already grappling with staffing shortages, are taking advantage of the influx of foreign workers. At the same time, restaurants and manufacturing have begun tapping into foreign labor quotas.

    But while foreign labor alleviates immediate staffing shortages, it also adds complexity to wage dynamics and labor-rights enforcement in a market still reeling from conflict-related disruptions.

    “What we are seeing is no less than a structural change of the labor market, and decision makers must understand the meaning of this,” Dror Litvak, CEO of ManpowerGroup Israel, told The Media Line. “This is not some temporary event and could eventually lead to a rise in unemployment amongst Israelis.”

    BOI: Unemployment in Israel at 2.9%

    Unemployment in Israel currently stands at 2.9%, according to figures published by the Bank of Israel.

    Litvak noted: “If someone thinks that unemployment will remain low, they are mistaken. Foreigners are already occupying positions previously occupied by Israelis.”

    Hamas’ surprise attack and the subsequent war shook Israel to its core. In the labor market, that upheaval left decision makers and employers scrambling for solutions. One key response has been not only to increase the number of foreign workers admitted into the country, but also to expand the sectors in which they are permitted to work.

    “Decision makers are not looking at the long term, and they are trying to put the fires out,” said Litvak. “This will create a completely different reality.”

    Litvak does not see Palestinian laborers being allowed back into Israel in the coming decade.

    For Palestinian workers, their families, and the Palestinian economy, this is a major blow.

    “This is creating a major financial and social crisis that is politically motivated and not based on clear-cut security reasons,” Shai Grunberg, a spokesperson for Gisha, an Israeli NGO that focuses on freedom of movement for Palestinians, told The Media Line.

    Even before the war, the far-right Israeli government pushed to adopt policies that would sever ties with the PA. The outbreak of the war only intensified those calls.

    Some Israeli security officials have called for Palestinian work permits to be reinstated to prevent a major crisis in the PA. The government has not acted on those calls.

    For now, workers from Thailand and Sri Lanka are stocking supermarket shelves and cleaning the streets. Employers say they are satisfied with the new labor supply.

    Litvak also raised concerns about the employment conditions of the new workers.

    “Israel is at risk of creating a slave market rather than a job market,” he said. “The conditions that some of the workers live in are worse than Israeli prisoners, and in the end, this will create even greater problems.”

    In a separate move that has alarmed international aid agencies and the United Nations, Israel has begun a sweeping regulatory overhaul that would drastically affect the work of foreign humanitarian NGOs in Gaza and the West Bank.

    Under new rules enforced from the beginning of 2026, more than 30 organizations face license suspension unless they comply with stringent transparency and registration requirements, including detailed disclosure of Palestinian staff and funding sources.

    Israel will no longer allow NGOs to bring supplies into Gaza or send international staffers into the war-torn territory.

    “The most acute consequence will be to the ability of the civilian population in Gaza to survive,” said Grunberg. “Since the beginning of the war, Israel has hindered the work of the NGOs, and this new mechanism, with its disproportionate and draconian measures, will deal a severe blow to essential health services in Gaza.”

    Proponents within the Israeli government maintain that the measures are needed to prevent exploitation of aid by Palestinian terrorist groups.

    Citing security concerns, the government is determined to implement the policy despite international condemnation. Coupled with tighter control of Palestinian movement and the drastic reduction in Palestinian laborers, Israel appears to be seeking to sever as many connections as possible to Palestinians and the PA.

    “These are different expressions of the same political rationale by which further control over Palestinians and their movements has a greater impact on the civilian population in the West Bank and Gaza,” said Grunberg. “This is a policy that is intended to bring about the falling apart of the fabric of Palestinian life.”

    The reality emerging is not merely a wartime adjustment, but what appears to be a fundamental shift in Israel’s labor market. The rapid replacement of Palestinian workers with foreign labor, alongside tighter restrictions on humanitarian actors, reflects a policy of breaking away from dependence on Palestinian labor, with far-reaching consequences.

    While these measures may ease immediate economic pressures, they risk creating new vulnerabilities, straining labor standards, deepening the crisis in an already struggling Palestinian economy, and potentially fueling greater instability over time.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • This Vietnamese town boomed as factories left China. Now it’s asking what’s next?

    [ad_1]

    BAC NINH, Vietnam — The transformation of Vietnam’s Bac Ninh is evident in the signs above its shops and the spicy Chinese and Korean dishes on its tables.

    Once known for its rice fields and the love duets of its centuries-old Quan Ho folk songs, the city just north of Hanoi has become one of Vietnam’s busiest factory zones, reflecting a surge of investment, hastened by President Donald Trump’s tariff hikes, that are reshaping the region.

    The economy has profited from friction between Washington and Beijing as factories shifted out of China, joining earlier waves of foreign investment by the Japanese and South Koreans that have made Vietnam a global manufacturing hub. But rising labor costs, worker shortages and inadequate infrastructure are exposing the limits to its rapid rise.

    With rivals like Indonesia and the Philippines competing hard for new projects, Vietnam is trying to climb into higher-value manufacturing and expand export markets to maintain that momentum. That effort is evident in Bac Ninh.

    Traditionally a center for artisans, Bac Ninh’s first boom began around 2008 when Samsung built its first phone factory there, turning Vietnam into its largest offshore manufacturing base.

    Now, Chinese companies are pouring in as they diversify their factory locations to skirt U.S. tariffs and other trade restrictions. After Hanoi and Beijing normalized ties in the 1990s, inflows of Chinese investment began to pick up as Chinese firms in places like Bac Ninh tapped Vietnam’s electronics supply chain, labor force and supportive local governments, often aided by Chinese-speaking intermediaries who smooth paperwork and logistics.

    But Vietnam is too small to replace China, whose economy is 40 times larger, as the world’s factory floor. To try to keep up, its leaders are building new infrastructure, including a highway to the Chinese border that has cut travel time by more than an hour. A railway will connect Hanoi to Haiphong — Vietnam’s largest seaport — and then the border town of Lao Cai.

    On Dec. 19, Bac Ninh broke ground on the expansion of an industrial zone for high-tech manufacturing, including electronics, pharmaceuticals and clean energy. It’s part of a synchronized nationwide push in which Vietnam launched 234 major projects worth more than $129 billion just weeks before a pivotal National Party Congress in January, when leaders will decide the country’s political leadership and economic direction.

    In Bac Ninh’s downtown, a convenience store bears the name Tmall, after Alibaba’s flagship online marketplace. Signs in Chinese advertise services for investors. Chinese–Vietnamese language schools have opened to help locals and Chinese to learn each others’ languages.

    But as Chinese companies compete for the best labor and other resources, costs are rising for the “China plus one” strategy of moving factories out of China to other locations, for example, Apple’s shift into India.

    “It is becoming difficult to recruit workers,” said Peng, who works at a telecoms equipment company that moved from China’s southern technology hub of Shenzhen. He gave only one name because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

    Labor costs have jumped 10%–15% since 2024, he said, “And we expect them to keep rising.”

    Vietnam still need technology, equipment and expertise from China, which had created “the best manufacturing ecosystem,” said Jacob Rothman, co-founder and CEO of China-based Velong Enterprises, which makes grill tools and kitchen gadgets and has shifted some production to Southeast Asian countries including Cambodia and Vietnam.

    Supply chains and manufacturers in China have benefited from decades of government support, large-scale investment and its huge population, Rothman said. “You can’t recreate that overnight.”

    Brian Bourke, global chief commercial officer at U.S.-based SEKO Logistics, said while factories making footwear, furniture and technology are still relocating to Vietnam, it lags China in infrastructure and logistics capabilities.

    Some of those limits are surfacing in boomtowns like Bac Ninh, where firms are trying to lure workers with higher wages and bonuses, a box of instant noodles on their first day and bus fares if they commute from another city, according to state media.

    Few countries have benefitted more from Trump’s trade war than Vietnam, whose biggest export market is still the U.S. In 2024, Vietnam ran a $123.5 billion surplus with the U.S., the third largest behind China and Mexico. That irked Trump, who threatened a 46% import tax on Vietnamese goods before settling on 20%.

    The two countries are still working toward a deal to keep most tariffs at 20%. Vietnam has offered broad preferential access for U.S. products, the White House said in October. So far, it has largely absorbed the tariffs, running a trade surplus of $121.6 billion in January-November 2025.

    The agreement in October by Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping to a year-long trade truce and lower average tariffs on Chinese exports to the U.S. to about 47% helped ease some concerns. But persisting uncertainty over tariffs and other trade restrictions means companies aren’t just trying to shift factories out of China but to spread them across several countries, said Frederic Neumann, chief Asia economist at HSBC.

    Even with lower U.S. tariffs on China, the calculus still favors moving to Southeast Asia where manufacturing inefficiencies add only about 10% in cost. But while large corporations can shift production easily, smaller firms may struggle to fit a new factory with expensive equipment.

    “(The) race to move outside of China is still happening, and it’s accelerating,” Rothman said.

    Vietnam is still attracting ample foreign investment. Cumulative foreign investment topped $28.5 billion as of September, up 15% from last year. But scrutiny of Vietnam’s role as a hub for tariff-dodging transshipments has some manufacturers hedging their bets.

    One of SEKO Logistics’ customers has shifted some of its furniture making to India, not wanting to “put all their eggs in Vietnam,” Bourke said.

    Countries like Indonesia and the Philippines, which missed the early gains Vietnam captured, are promoting themselves as alternative manufacturing bases. In the Philippines, a new law allows foreign investors to lease private land for up to 99 years to attract long-term commercial and industrial investment.

    Vietnam has a goal of becoming rich by 2045. It aims to become Asia’s next “tiger economy,” following export powerhouses like South Korea and Taiwan by shifting from low-cost assembly work to manufacture higher-value products like electronics and clean energy equipment.

    It’s offering incentives like tax breaks on imported machinery and discounted rents to help factory suppliers upgrade and modernize. About a third still use non-automated equipment and only about 10% use robots on their production lines.

    The country also is trying to reduce its dependence on the U.S. market by expanding exports to the Middle East, Latin America, Africa and India. Overseas trade offices have been asked to share market intelligence and promote products made in Vietnam.

    Vietnam knows that rising costs and tougher competition will test how far it — and places like Bac Ninh — can climb. Announcing hundreds of projects in December, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh framed the stakes: Vietnam must “reach far into the ocean, delve deep underground and soar high into space.”

    ___

    Chan reported from Hong Kong. Associated Press researcher Yu Bing in Beijing contributed.

    ___

    The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Denver Public Library workers move to unionize in 2026

    [ad_1]

    Jade Kelly, president of Communications Workers of America Local 7799, speaks as Denver Public Library workers meet at the City and County Building to celebrate the next step in their effort to unionize. Jan. 2, 2025.

    Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite

    Workers at the Denver Public Library took a big step toward forming a union, potentially making them the first city employees to take advantage of new labor organizing rights.

    An organizing group, Denver Public Library Workers United, filed a formal request on Jan. 2 to become a city-recognized union. The group hopes to collectively bargain on behalf of library workers.

    Eyklipse Baca speaks as she and her Denver Public Library colleagues meet at the City and County Building to celebrate the next step in their effort to unionize. Jan. 2, 2025.
    Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite

    The action came just a day after a new law took effect, allowing thousands of city employees to join unions and engage in collective bargaining. 

    “Now more than ever we need to, as workers, whether you’re a public-sector worker, private-sector worker, now is the time to unionize,” said Juan Manuel Ramirez Anzures, administrative assistant for the children’s library. “Now is the time for solidarity and all power to the workers.” 

    Juan Manuel Ramirez Anzures, an administrative assistant at Denver Public Library Central Children’s Library, stands beneath the City and County Building as he and his colleagues celebrate the next step in their effort to unionize. Jan. 2, 2025.
    Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite

    Denver’s library workers have been organizing since 2020

    They say they are seeking formal recognition now because of the change in the law, as well as recent city layoffs and budget cuts. In 2024, Denver voters overwhelmingly approved a ballot measure to grant the new labor rights, which took effect Jan. 1.

    Hundreds of library staff members have been working together under the guidance of the Communications Workers of America Local 7799, according to DPLWU. 

    “We are all uniquely screwed by Colorado labor law. For the past 90 years, the Colorado Labor Peace Act has forced us as the public-sector workers to sit in silence as our health, as our civil rights, as our workplace protections are dismissed in boardrooms without us,” said Jade Kelly, president of CWA Local 7799.

    • Jen Lowe, an on-call circulation worker with the Denver Public Library, speaks as her colleagues gather at the City and County Building to celebrate the next step in their effort to unionize. Jan. 2, 2025.
      Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
    • Eyklipse Baca speaks as she and her Denver Public Library colleagues meet at the City and County Building to celebrate the next step in their effort to unionize. Jan. 2, 2025.
      Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite

    DPLWU says it filed a supermajority of worker authorization cards, with 65 percent of eligible employees signing. A worker authorization card is a document signed by an employee to officially designate a union as their representative for collective bargaining. 

    Management at the Denver Public Library could voluntarily recognize the union

    If they don’t, then a union election would be held with the library staff.

    “We support our staff’s right to unionize and we respect the city’s process,” wrote a spokesperson for the Denver Public Library in an email.  

    The affected staff includes shelvers, clerks, facilities, security, librarians, library assistants, custodians, delivery drivers and other positions.

    City Council member Sarah Parady speaks as Denver Public Library workers meet at the City and County Building to celebrate the next step in their effort to unionize. Jan. 2, 2025.
    Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite

    “I’m feeling hopeful. I’m feeling supported by the public, by my coworkers, and by all these wonderful CWA organizers who have been there holding our hand every step of the way,” Manuel Ramirez Anzures said. “Once we get to that final contract, that will be a really great day.”

    DPLWU says it wants to work with library management to increase transparency around library decisions, address staff concerns about safety and ensure fair wages.

    Denver Public Library workers meet at the City and County Building to celebrate the next step in their effort to unionize. Jan. 2, 2025.
    Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • US applications for jobless benefits fell below 200,000 last week

    [ad_1]

    WASHINGTON — Fewer Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week with layoffs remaining low despite a weakening labor market.

    U.S. applications for jobless claims for the week ending Dec. 27 fell by 16,000 to 199,000 from the previous week’s 215,000, the Labor Department reported Wednesday. Analysts surveyed by the data firm FactSet forecast 208,000 new applications.

    Unemployment benefit filings are often distorted during holiday-shortened weeks. The shorter week can cause some who have lost jobs to delay filing claims.

    The weekly report was released a day early due to the New Year’s Day holiday.

    Applications for unemployment aid are viewed as a proxy for layoffs and are close to a real-time indicator of the health of the job market.

    Earlier this month, the government reported that the U.S. gained a decent 64,000 jobs in November but lost 105,000 in October as federal workers departed after cutbacks by the Trump administration. That helped to push the unemployment rate up to 4.6% last month, the highest since 2021.

    The October job losses were caused by a 162,000 drop in federal workers, many of whom resigned at the end of fiscal year 2025 on Sept. 30 under pressure from billionaire Elon Musk’s purge of U.S. government payrolls.

    Labor Department revisions also knocked 33,000 jobs off August and September payrolls.

    Recent government data has revealed a labor market in which hiring has clearly lost momentum, hobbled by uncertainty over President Donald Trump’s tariffs and the lingering effects of the high interest rates the Fed engineered in 2022 and 2023 to rein in an outburst of pandemic-induced inflation. Since March, job creation has fallen to an average 35,000 a month, compared to 71,000 in the year ended in March.

    Earlier this month, the Federal Reserve trimmed its benchmark lending rate by a quarter-point, its third straight cut.

    Fed Chair Jerome Powell said the committee reduced borrowing costs out of concern that the job market is even weaker than it appears. Powell said that recent job figures could be revised lower by as much as 60,000, which would mean employers have actually been shedding an average of about 25,000 jobs a month since the spring.

    Companies that have recently announced job cuts include UPS, General Motors, Amazon and Verizon.

    The Labor Department’s report Wednesday also showed that the four-week average of claims, which evens out some of the week-to-week volatility, rose by 1,750 to 218,7500.

    The total number of Americans filing for jobless benefits for the previous week ending Dec. 20 fell by 47,000 to 1.87 million, the government said.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Telluride Ski Resort in Colorado to close Saturday due to labor dispute

    [ad_1]

    FORT COLLINS, Colo. — Telluride, one of the best-known ski resorts in the Western U.S., plans to close in the coming days due to a labor dispute between its owner and the ski patrol union.

    The Telluride Professional Ski Patrol Association voted Tuesday to strike Saturday after contract negotiations since June failed to yield an agreement on pay. With no more talks planned before the weekend, Telluride Ski Resort said it will not open that day.

    “We are concerned that any organization, particularly one that exists to help people, would do something that will have such a devastating effect on our community,” owner Chuck Horning said Wednesday in a statement.

    It was not immediately clear whether the closure will last longer. Resort officials were working on a plan to reopen even if the strike continues, according to the statement.

    The patrollers are seeking to be paid more in line with their counterparts at other resorts in the region.

    The union wants starting pay to rise from $21 to $28 per hour, and for wages for patrollers with more than 30 years of experience to increase from $30-$36 per hour to $39-$48.60 per hour.

    While resort officials sought to lay blame for the impending closure on the union, Andy Dennis, interim safety director and spokesperson for patrollers’ association, said it lies with Horning.

    “He’s being a bully. This is what bullies do, take their toys and run,” Dennis said. “All he has to do is give us a fair contract, and this would all be over.”

    Ski patrollers sometimes argue for more pay on the grounds that the cost of living is high in ski towns and they are responsible for people’s safety. Patrollers’ duties include attending to injured skiers and the controlled release of avalanches with explosives when nobody is in range.

    Even without a strike, Telluride has yet to get going fully this season, with unusually warm weather meaning just 20 of the resort’s 149 trails have been able to open.

    Patrollers around the Rocky Mountain region have been voting on unionizing recently.

    Last year an almost two-week strike closed many runs and caused long lift lines at Utah’s Park City Mountain Resort. That strike ended when Colorado-based Vail Resorts acceded to demands including a $2-an-hour base pay increase and raises for senior ski patrollers.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Telluride Ski Resort in Colorado to Close Saturday Due to Labor Dispute

    [ad_1]

    FORT COLLINS, Colo. (AP) — Telluride, one of the best-known ski resorts in the Western U.S., plans to close in the coming days due to a labor dispute between its owner and the ski patrol union.

    The Telluride Professional Ski Patrol Association voted Tuesday to strike Saturday after contract negotiations since June failed to yield an agreement on pay. With no more talks planned before the weekend, Telluride Ski Resort said it will not open that day.

    “We are concerned that any organization, particularly one that exists to help people, would do something that will have such a devastating effect on our community,” owner Chuck Horning said Wednesday in a statement.

    It was not immediately clear whether the closure will last longer. Resort officials were working on a plan to reopen even if the strike continues, according to the statement.

    The patrollers are seeking to be paid more in line with their counterparts at other resorts in the region.

    The union wants starting pay to rise from $21 to $28 per hour, and for wages for patrollers with more than 30 years of experience to increase from $30-$36 per hour to $39-$48.60 per hour.

    While resort officials sought to lay blame for the impending closure on the union, Andy Dennis, interim safety director and spokesperson for patrollers’ association, said it lies with Horning.

    “He’s being a bully. This is what bullies do, take their toys and run,” Dennis said. “All he has to do is give us a fair contract, and this would all be over.”

    Ski patrollers sometimes argue for more pay on the grounds that the cost of living is high in ski towns and they are responsible for people’s safety. Patrollers’ duties include attending to injured skiers and the controlled release of avalanches with explosives when nobody is in range.

    Even without a strike, Telluride has yet to get going fully this season, with unusually warm weather meaning just 20 of the resort’s 149 trails have been able to open.

    Patrollers around the Rocky Mountain region have been voting on unionizing recently.

    Last year an almost two-week strike closed many runs and caused long lift lines at Utah‘s Park City Mountain Resort. That strike ended when Colorado-based Vail Resorts acceded to demands including a $2-an-hour base pay increase and raises for senior ski patrollers.

    Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

    Photos You Should See – December 2025

    [ad_2]

    Associated Press

    Source link

  • US unemployment claims fall again last week, remain at historically healthy level

    [ad_1]

    WASHINGTON — The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits fell last week and remain at historically healthy levels despite some signs that the labor market is weakening.

    U.S. applications for jobless claims for the week ending Dec. 20 fell by 10,000 to 214,000 from the previous week’s 224,000, the Labor Department reported Wednesday. That’s below the 232,000 new applications forecast of analysts surveyed by the data firm FactSet.

    The weekly report was released a day early due to the Christmas holiday.

    Applications for unemployment aid are viewed as a proxy for layoffs and are close to a real-time indicator of the health of the job market.

    Last week, the government reported that the U.S. gained a decent 64,000 jobs in November but lost 105,000 in October as federal workers departed after cutbacks by the Trump administration.

    The unemployment rate rose to 4.6% last month, the highest since 2021.

    The October job losses were caused by a 162,000 drop in federal workers, many of whom resigned at the end of fiscal year 2025 on Sept. 30 under pressure from billionaire Elon Musk’s purge of U.S. government payrolls.

    Labor Department revisions also knocked 33,000 jobs off August and September payrolls.

    Hiring has clearly lost momentum, hobbled by uncertainty over President Donald Trump’s tariffs and the lingering effects of the high interest rates the Fed engineered in 2022 and 2023 to rein in an outburst of pandemic-induced inflation. Since March, job creation has fallen to an average 35,000 a month, compared to 71,000 in the year ended in March.

    Earlier this month, the Federal Reserve trimmed its benchmark lending rate by a quarter-point, its third straight cut.

    Fed Chair Jerome Powell said the committee reduced borrowing costs out of concern that the job market is even weaker than it appears. Powell said that recent job figures could be revised lower by as much as 60,000, which would mean employers have actually been shedding an average of about 25,000 jobs a month since the spring.

    Companies that have recently announced job cuts include UPS, General Motors, Amazon and Verizon, but those workforce reductions can take months to show up in the government’s data.

    The Labor Department’s report Wednesday also showed that the four-week average of claims, which evens out some of the week-to-week volatility, fell by 750 to 216,750.

    The total number of Americans filing for jobless benefits for the previous week ending Dec. 13 rose by 38,000 to 1.92 million, the government said.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Trump administration moves to overhaul how H-1B visas are granted, ending lottery system

    [ad_1]

    WASHINGTON — The Department of Homeland Security said Tuesday it was replacing its longstanding lottery system for H-1B work visas with a new approach that prioritizes skilled, higher-paid foreign workers.

    The change follows a series of actions by the Trump administration aimed at reshaping a visa program that critics say has become a pipeline for overseas workers willing to work for lower pay, but supporters say drives innovation.

    “The existing random selection process of H-1B registrations was exploited and abused by U.S. employers who were primarily seeking to import foreign workers at lower wages than they would pay American workers,” said U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services spokesman Matthew Tragesser.

    Earlier this year, President Donald Trump signed a proclamation imposing a $100,000 annual H-1B visa fee on highly skilled workers, which is being challenged in court. The president also rolled out a $1 million “gold card” visa as a pathway to U.S. citizenship for wealthy individuals.

    A press release announcing the new rule says it is “in line with other key changes the administration has made, such as the Presidential Proclamation that requires employers to pay an additional $100,000 per visa as a condition of eligibility.”

    Historically, H-1B visas have been awarded through a lottery system. This year, Amazon was by far the top recipient, with more than 10,000 visas approved, followed by Tata Consultancy Services, Microsoft, Apple and Google. California has the highest concentration of H-1B workers.

    The new system will “implement a weighted selection process that will increase the probability that H-1B visas are allocated to higher-skilled and higher-paid” foreign workers, according to Tuesday’s press release. It will go into effect Feb. 27, 2026, and will apply to the upcoming H-1B cap registration season.

    Supporters of the H-1B program say it is an important pathway to hiring healthcare workers and educators. They say it drives innovation and economic growth in the U.S. and allows employers to fill jobs in specialized fields.

    Critics argue that the visas often go to entry-level positions rather than senior roles requiring specialized skills. While the program is intended to prevent wage suppression or the displacement of U.S. workers, critics say companies can pay lower wages by classifying jobs at the lowest skill levels, even when the workers hired have more experience.

    The number of new visas issued annually is capped at 65,000, plus an additional 20,000 for people with a master’s degree or higher.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Trump Removes Nearly 30 Career Diplomats From Ambassadorial Positions

    [ad_1]

    WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration is recalling nearly 30 career diplomats from ambassadorial and other senior embassy posts as it moves to reshape the U.S. diplomatic posture abroad with personnel deemed fully supportive of President Donald Trump’s “America First” priorities.

    The chiefs of mission in at least 29 countries were informed last week that their tenures would end in January, according to two State Department officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal personnel moves.

    All of them had taken up their posts in the Biden administration but had survived an initial purge in the early months of Trump’s second term that targeted mainly political appointees. That changed on Wednesday when they began to receive notices from officials in Washington about their imminent departures.

    Ambassadors serve at the pleasure of the president although they typically remain at their posts for three to four years. Those affected by the shake-up are not losing their foreign service jobs but will be returning to Washington for other assignments should they wish to take them, the officials said.

    The State Department declined to comment on specific numbers or ambassadors affected, but defended the changes, calling them “a standard process in any administration.” It noted that an ambassador is “a personal representative of the president and it is the president’s right to ensure that he has individuals in these countries who advance the America First agenda.”

    Africa is the continent most affected by the removals, with ambassadors from 13 countries being removed: Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Gabon, Ivory Coast, Madagascar, Madagascar, Mauritius, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Somalia and Uganda.

    Second is Asia, with ambassadorial changes coming to six countries: Fiji, Laos, the Marshall Islands, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines and Vietnam affected.

    Four countries in Europe (Armenia, Macedonia, Montenegro and Slovakia) are affected; as are two each in the Middle East (Algeria and Egypt); South and Central Asia (Nepal and Sri Lanka); and the Western Hemisphere (Guatemala and Suriname).

    Politico was the first to report on the ambassadorial recalls, which have drawn concern from some lawmakers and the union representing American diplomats.

    Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

    Photos You Should See – December 2025

    [ad_2]

    Associated Press

    Source link

  • Walmart and other US companies want to build a pipeline of skilled tradespeople

    [ad_1]

    BENTONVILLE, Ark. — As the number of skilled tradespeople dwindles in the United States, Walmart is trying to build up its own workforce to keep conveyor belts moving, refrigerated grocery cases cold, and drains and parking lots flowing.

    The nation’s largest retailer and private employer revamped its training program last year to increase the pipeline of maintenance technicians who do everything from repair equipment to electrical work at Walmart’s distribution centers and stores — jobs that have become increasingly difficult to fill because of a shrinking labor pool.

    The shortage has opened opportunities for people like Liz Cardenas, 24, who started at Walmart in May 2023 as an automation equipment operator at a distribution center in Lancaster, Texas, making sure boxes were securely taped and went through a conveyer belt upright. Today, she is responsible for fixing conveyor belts and other equipment when they break at distribution centers.

    Cardenas, who nearly doubled her hourly pay to $43.50 per hour, said she plans to pursue more training, which will mean an even higher salary and more responsibility. It also means financial freedom.

    “I was able to move out of my parents’ house,” she said. “I have my own apartment. I was able to get a car, and and I’m able to give more to my 401(k).”

    A surge of retirements, along with a slowdown in immigration that began during the pandemic but now is accelerating with President Donald Trump’s aggressive deportations, are among the main factors behind labor shortages that bedevil some employers, analysts say.

    But in skilled trades, the problem is even more acute. Consulting firm McKinsey analyzed 12 types of trade job categories, including maintenance technicians, welders, and carpenters, and predicted an estimated imbalance of 20 job openings for every one net new employee from 2022 to 2032.

    McKinsey noted “the extraordinary rate of churn” could cost companies more than $5.3 billion every year in talent acquisition and training costs alone.

    The shortages are happening as some companies are also laying off workers amid rising operational costs from new tariffs, shifting consumer spending and increased spending on artificial intelligence.

    Business Roundtable, a lobbying group of CEOs from roughly 150 companies representing millions of employees nationwide, launched in June a new initiative to address worker shortages in skilled trades, including maintenance technicians. The initiative, co-championed by home improvement retailer Lowe’s, entails working with elementary, middle and high schools to raise awareness.

    “While technology continues to evolve, it cannot replace plumbers, electricians, construction workers, maintenance and repair pros, or other tradespeople,” said Marvin Ellison, chairman and CEO of Lowe’s.

    For its part, Lowe’s in 2022 started a 90-day online training program for employees who want to pursue jobs like carpentry and utility maintenance. Separately, its charitable arm has invested $43 million since 2023 to 60 organizations including technical colleges and non-profit groups to help recruit and train skilled tradespeople like maintenance technicians and plumbers.

    Mervin Jebaraj of the University of Arkansas’s Walton College of Business in Fayetteville, Arkansas, noted these programs will help ease the shortages, but they won’t eliminate the gap, particularly given Trump’s clampdown on immigration.

    “For as long as somebody physically needs to fix this, the shortage will persist, even though on the margins it’ll mitigate some of the shortage,” he said. “We don’t have enough people.”

    Walmart CEO Doug McMillon recently told The Associated Press he believes part of the reason for the shortages is “lack of awareness.”

    “I think most Americans probably don’t know what a tech makes that helps take care of our stores and clubs and that we can help them learn how to be a tech,” he said. “So we have a need to get the word out so that people know there are some great jobs.”

    Walmart revamped its training program in the spring of 2024, focusing on its own workers with a tuition-free training initiative in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. This year, it added new training sites in Vincennes, Indiana, and Jacksonville, Florida. The initiative combines hands-on instruction and classroom learning in fields like heating, ventilation, air conditioning, electrical work, and general maintenance.

    As of mid-November, almost 400 employees had graduated from the program, Walmart said. With its first class of 108 associates who completed the Dallas/Fort Worth pilot program, every graduate secured a technician role, putting them on a path to earn an average of $32 per hour. Walmart said its goal is to put 4,000 workers through the training program by 2030.

    R.J. Zanes, vice president of facility services for the U.S. divisions of Walmart and Sam’s Club, said Walmart was able to attract workers from all over the country with different backgrounds, including employees running cash registers.

    Maintenance technician roles are crucial to keeping Walmart’s operations running smoothly, but especially so during the holiday season. For example, if a refrigeration system goes down within a Walmart store, it could cost up to $300,000 to $400,000 worth of lost product, according to Zanes.

    “We’ve got to stay out in front of that,” he said. “We have to ensure that we’ve got the right skills there to do preventative maintenance, and when we do have a breakdown, to make sure that we get it back up as fast as possible to minimize that cost of downtime.”

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • The Bank of England cuts its key interest rate from 4% to 3.75%

    [ad_1]

    LONDON — The Bank of England on Thursday cut its key interest rate for the first time in four months amid signs that the stubbornly high inflation that has plagued British consumers and businesses is beginning to ease.

    Policymakers at Britain’s central bank voted 5-4 to reduce the base rate by a quarter of a percentage point to 3.75% on Thursday, the lowest since February 2023.

    The move came a day after the Office for National Statistics reported that consumer price inflation slowed to 3.2% in the 12 months through November, from 3.6% a month earlier.

    The figure was below the Bank of England’s forecast of 3.4%. That gave policymakers room to cut interest rates in an effort to bolster Britain’s stagnant economy. Statistics released earlier this week showed a weakening jobs market, with the number of job vacancies declining and the unemployment rate rising to 5.1%, the highest since January 2021.

    Even so, the bank’s Monetary Policy Committee was divided on whether to cut interest rates, with four members remaining focused on the fight against inflation, which is still well above the Bank of England’s 2% target.

    British consumer prices are also rising faster than in other parts of Europe and North America. The inflation rate in the 20 European countries that use the euro currency remained at 2.1% in November. The U.S. inflation rate was 3.0% in September, the latest figures released due to the government shutdown.

    Lower interest rates help spur economic growth by reducing borrowing costs, which can lead to increased spending by consumers and boost investment by businesses. But that can also fuel higher prices.

    Central bankers have to weigh those competing forces, trying to prevent inflation from eroding the value of earnings and savings without putting an unnecessary brake on economic growth.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Federal Reserve cuts key rate, sees healthier economy next year

    [ad_1]

    WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve reduced its key interest rate by a quarter-point for the third time in a row Wednesday but signaled that it may leave rates unchanged in the coming months.

    The cut decreased the Fed’s rate to about 3.6%, the lowest it has been in nearly three years. Lower rates from the Fed can bring down borrowing costs for mortgages, auto loans, and credit cards over time, though market forces can also affect those rates.

    Chair Jerome Powell suggested at a news conference that after six rate cuts in the past two years, the central bank can step back and see how hiring and inflation develop. In a set of quarterly economic projections, Fed officials signaled they expect to lower rates just once next year.

    Fed officials “will carefully evaluate the incoming data,” Powell said, adding that the Fed is “well positioned to wait to see how the economy evolves.”

    The chair also said that the Fed’s key rate was close to a level that neither restricts nor stimulates the economy, a significant shift from earlier this year, when he described the rate as high enough to slow the economy and quell inflation. With rates closer to a more neutral level, the bar for further rate cuts is likely higher that it was this fall.

    “We believe the labor market will have to noticeably weaken to warrant another rate cut soon,” Ryan Sweet, global chief economist at Oxford Economics, said.

    Three Fed officials dissented from the move, the most dissents in six years and a sign of deep divisions on a committee that traditionally works by consensus. Two officials voted to keep the Fed’s rate unchanged: Jeffrey Schmid, president of the Kansas City Fed, and Austan Goolsbee, president of the Chicago Fed. Stephen Miran, whom Trump appointed in September, voted for a half point cut.

    December’s meeting could usher in a more contentious period for the Fed. Officials are split between those who support reducing rates to bolster hiring and those who’d prefer to keep rates unchanged because inflation remains above the central bank’s 2% target. Unless inflation shows clear signs of coming fully under control, or unemployment worsens, those divisions will likely remain.

    “What you see is some people feel we should stop here and we’re in the right place and should wait, and some people think we should cut more next year,” Powell said.

    A stark sign of the Fed’s divisions was the wide range of cuts that the 19 members of the Fed’s rate-setting committee penciled in for 2026. Seven projected no cuts next year, while eight forecast that the central bank would implement two or more reductions. Four supported just one. Only 12 out of 19 members vote on rate decisions.

    President Donald Trump on Wednesday criticized the cut as too small, and said he would have preferred “at least double.” Trump could name a new Fed chair as soon as later this month to replace Powell when his term ends in May. Trump’s new chair is likely to push for sharper rate cuts than many officials will support.

    Stocks jumped in response to the Fed’s move, in part because some Wall Street investors expected Powell to be more forceful in shutting down the possibility of future cuts. The broad S&P 500 stock index rose 0.7% and closed near an all-time high reached in October.

    Powell was also optimistic about the economy’s growth next year, and said that consumer spending remains resilient while companies are still investing in artificial intelligence infrastructure. He also suggested growing worker efficiency could contribute to faster growth without more inflation.

    Still, Powell said the committee reduced borrowing costs out of concern that the job market is even weaker than it appears. While government data shows that the economy has added just 40,000 jobs a month since April, Powell said that figure could be revised lower by as much as 60,000, which would mean employers have actually been shedding an average of 20,000 jobs a month since the spring.

    “It’s a labor market that seems to have significant downside risks,” Powell told reporters. “People care about that. That’s their jobs.”

    The Fed met against the backdrop of elevated inflation that has frustrated many Americans, with prices higher for groceries, rents, and utilities. Consumer prices have jumped 25% in the five years since COVID.

    “We hear loud and clear how people are experiencing really high costs,” Powell said Wednesday. “A lot of that isn’t the current rate of inflation, a lot of that is e mbedded high costs due to higher inflations in 2022-2023.”

    Powell said inflation could move higher early next year, as more companies pass tariff costs to consumers as they reset prices to start the year. Inflation should decline after that, he added, but it’s not guaranteed.

    “We just came off an experience where inflation turned out to be much more persistent than anyone expected,” he said, referring to the spike in 2022. “Is that going to happen now? That’s the risk.”

    The Fed’s policy meeting took place as the Trump administration moves toward picking a new Fed chair to replace Powell when his term finishes in May. Trump’s nominee is likely to push for sharper rate cuts than many officials may support.

    Trump has hinted that he will likely pick Kevin Hassett, his top economic adviser. But on Wednesday, Trump said he would meet with Kevin Warsh, a former Fed governor who has also been on the short list to replace Powell.

    Trump added that he wants someone who will lower interest rates. “Our rates should be the lowest rates in the world,” he said.

    A government report last week showed that overall and core prices rose 2.8% in September from a year earlier, according to the Fed’s preferred measure. That is far below the spikes in inflation three years ago but still painful for many households after the big run-up since 2020.

    Adding to the Fed’s challenges, job gains have slowed sharply this year and the unemployment rate has risen for three straight months to 4.4%. While that is still a low rate historically, it is the highest in four years. Layoffs are also muted, so far, as part of what many economists call a “low hire, low fire” job market.

    The Fed typically keeps its key rate elevated to combat inflation, while it often reduces borrowing costs when unemployment worsens to spur more spending and hiring.

    Powell will preside over only three more Fed meetings before he steps down. On Wednesday, he was asked about his legacy.

    “I really want to turn this job over to whoever replaces me with the economy in really good shape,” he said. “I want inflation to be under control, coming back down to 2%, and I want the labor market to be strong.”

    ___

    Associated Press Writers Collin Binkley and Alex Veiga in Los Angeles contributed to this report.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • A sharp drop for Oracle keeps Wall Street in check as most US stocks rise

    [ad_1]

    NEW YORK — Most U.S. stocks are rising on Thursday, but a drop for Oracle is holding Wall Street back as investors question whether its big spending on artificial-intelligence technology will pay off.

    The S&P 500 fell 0.4% in early trading and pulled a bit further from its all-time high, which was set in October. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 233 points, or 0.5%, as of 9:35 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.7% lower.

    Oracle was one of the heaviest weights on the market and sank 14.5% even though it reported a better profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Its 14% growth in revenue came up just short of expectations.

    Doubts also remain about whether all the spending that Oracle is doing on AI technology will produce the payoff of increased profits and productivity that proponents are promising. Analysts said they were surprised by how much Oracle may spend on AI investments this fiscal year, and questions continue about how the company will pay for it.

    Such doubts are weighing on the AI industry broadly, even as many billions of dollars continue to flow in. They had helped drag the broad U.S. stock market through some sharp and scary swings last month.

    Nvidia, the chip company that’s become the poster child of the AI boom and is raking in close to $20 billion each month, fell 2.8% Thursday. It was the single heaviest weight on the S&P 500.

    Oracle Chairman Larry Ellison said it will continue to buy chips from Nvidia, but it’s now taking a policy of “chip neutrality,” where it will use “whatever chips our customers want to buy. There are going to be a lot of changes in AI technology over the next few years and we must remain agile in response to those changes.”

    Most U.S. stocks nevertheless rose, thanks in part to easing Treasury yields in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.10% from 4.13% on Wednesday and from 4.18% on Tuesday.

    Lower Treasury yields mean U.S. government bonds are paying less in interest, which can encourage investors to pay higher prices for stocks and other kinds of investments.

    Yields fell after a report said the number of U.S. workers applying for unemployment benefits jumped last week by more than economists expected. That’s a potential indication of rising layoffs.

    A day earlier, yields eased after the Federal Reserve cut its main interest rate for the third time this year and indicated another cut may be ahead in 2026. Wall Street loves lower interest rates because they can boost the economy and send prices for investments higher, even if they potentially make inflation worse.

    The Walt Disney Co. was among the market’s strongest gainers. It climbed 2.1% after OpenAI announced a three-year agreement that will allow it to use more than 200 Disney, Marvel, Pixar and Star Wars characters to generate short, user-prompted social videos. Disney is also investing $1 billion in OpenAI.

    Elsewhere on Wall Street, Oxford Industries tumbled 15.1% after the company behind Tommy Bahama and Lilly Pulitzer said its customers have been seeking out deals and are “highly value-driven.” CEO Tom Chubb said the start of the holiday shopping season has been weaker than the company expected, and it cut its forecast for revenue over the full year.

    Vera Bradley, meanwhile, fell 26% after reporting a larger loss than expected.

    In stock markets abroad, indexes ticked higher in Europe after falling in much of Asia.

    Japan’s Nikkei 225 index sank 0.9%, hurt by a sharp drop for SoftBank Group Corp., which is a major investor in AI.

    ___

    AP Writers Teresa Cerojano and Matt Ott contributed.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Instawork Year in Flexible Labor 2025: Inland Markets Surge as Coastal Affordability Tightens

    [ad_1]


    SAN FRANCISCO, December 10, 2025 (Newswire.com)
    –
    Instawork today released The Year in Flexible Labor 2025, an annual view of the real-time labor dynamics that shaped local economies this year.

    Based on millions of completed shifts across 150 markets, the real-time data shows affordability as the dominant force determining where businesses operate and where workers choose to earn. While major markets remained the busiest for total shifts, inland regions, particularly parts of North Carolina, Ohio, and Tennessee, saw the fastest acceleration in demand. This aligns with recent Census data showing that the fastest-growing U.S. metros were in Southern and inland markets.1

    Logistics and manufacturing operations show a similar pattern. A 2025 study of 50 U.S. metro areas found that warehousing and distribution activity has increasingly re-concentrated in inland and mid-sized markets rather than coastal hubs, driven by land availability, operating costs, and proximity to regional supply chains.2 Instawork’s flexible labor data captures this trend in real-time.

    Key Insights From Instawork Year in Flexible Labor 2025

    1. Affordability Increased Staffing Pressure

    Several major markets continued to show the largest demand for flexible work, but affordability challenges intensified sharply in 2025:

    San Francisco and Seattle recorded the widest wage-inflation gaps, with real wages falling further behind the cost of essential goods.3

    That pressure coincided with population and cost trends in inland markets where wage growth held closer to inflation and operating costs remained more stable.

    2. Inland Metros Drove the Fastest Shift Growth

    As affordability tightened in coastal markets, inland regions captured the strongest gains in flexible labor activity, reflecting broader economic and population expansion in the South and Midwest. Raleigh-Durham led the way with a surge in flexible labor demand followed by Nashville, New York, Columbus, and Dallas.

    Instawork Year of Flexible Work 2025: The Inland Surge
    Inland Metros Drove the Fastest Shift Growth

    3. Core Operational Roles and Midweek Demand Held Steady

    General labor, warehouse work, back-of-house kitchen roles, and event staffing were in the highest demand throughout 2025, with businesses leaning on flexible staffing to manage an uncertain business environment.

    Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Tuesdays (in that order) remained the busiest shift days, giving workers predictable midweek opportunities, while maintaining schedule and income flexibility.

    4. Wage Movement by Occupation

    Role-level wage trends varied, reflecting local cost pressures and staffing needs. Merchandisers saw the strongest wage growth, followed by brand ambassadors, security personnel, and entry-level warehouse workers. Hotel housekeepers, food service workers, and forklift drivers experienced slight declines.

    Instawork Year in Flexible Labor 2025: Wage Growth by Occupation
    Wage Movement by Occupation

    2025 Totals at a Glance

    Top 5 most requested roles:

    General Labor, Warehouse Associate, Line Cook, Event Server, Dishwasher

    Fastest-growing markets:

    Raleigh-Durham, Nashville, New York, Columbus, Dallas

    Peak shift days:

    Wednesday, Thursday, Tuesday (in order)

    Average fill rate: 95%

    Stat of the Year

    Raleigh-Durham’s 50% shift growth and North Carolina’s broader population gains reflect a structural rise in inland economic activity, consistent with population and supply chain operations growth.1 2

    Signals for 2026

    Inland momentum will grow as businesses seek more predictable and lower-cost markets.

    Wages and role demand will continue to vary as businesses respond to global economic uncertainty and cost pressures, which impact staffing needs.

    Flexible staffing will continue serving as an affordability hedge, allowing operators to match labor to demand in real-time.

    Major markets with improving wage-inflation alignment (e.g., New York, Atlanta) may become more attractive for logistics and hospitality expansion.

    1. U.S. Census Bureau, “Metro Area Trends” (2025) and “Vintage 2024 Population Estimates”, showing growth in 88% of U.S. metros and fastest growth concentrated in Southern/inland cities.

    2. ScienceDirect (2025), “Re-concentration of logistics activities across 50 U.S. metros,” documenting the inland/mid-sized shift in warehousing and distribution activity.

    3. Instawork’s Quarterly Wage Index, December 2025

    About Instawork

    Instawork’s mission is to create economic opportunities for businesses and hourly workers across the globe. As the leading AI-powered marketplace for hourly labor, Instawork connects light industrial, hospitality, retail, and robotics companies to skilled workers, turning staffing agility into a competitive advantage. Instawork helps more than nine million workers earn on their terms while developing valuable skills.

    Backed by leading investors such as Benchmark, Craft, Greylock, and Spark Capital, Instawork is redefining how businesses stay resilient and how people work.

    Source: Instawork

    Related Media

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • MIT Report Claims 11.7% of U.S. Labor Can Be Replaced with Existing AI

    [ad_1]

    Last week, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) published a study claiming that AI is already capable of replacing 11.7% of existing U.S. labor. It’s certainly the kind of eye-popping study guaranteed to get a lot of eyes on researchers’ work at a time of shaky faith in AI, as stockholders might want some reassurance that their AI investments are going to pan out.

    The report on this research is called “The Iceberg Index: Measuring Skills-centered Exposure in the AI Economy,” but it also has its own dedicated page called “Project Iceberg” that lives on the MIT website. Compared to the research paper, the project page has a lot more emoji. Where the paper on the study comes across sort of like a warning about AI tech, the project page, which is headlined “Can AI Work with You?” feels more like an ad for AI, in part thanks to text like this: 

    “AI is transforming work. We have spent years making AIs smart—they can read, write, compose songs, shop for us. But what happens when they interact? When millions of smart AIs work together, intelligence emerges not from individual agents but from the protocols that coordinate them. Project Iceberg explores this new frontier: how AI agents coordinate with each other and humans at scale.”

    The titular “Iceberg Index” comes from an AI simulation that uses what the paper called “Large Population Models” that apparently ran on processors housed at the federally funded Oak Ridge National Laboratory, which is affiliated with the Department of Energy.

    Legislators and CEOS seem to be the target audience, and they’re meant to use Project Iceberg to “identify exposure hotspots, prioritize training and infrastructure investments, and test interventions before committing billions to implementation.”

    The Large Population Model—should we start shortening this to LPM?—claims to be able to digitally track the behavior of 151 million human workers “as autonomous agents” with 32,000 trackable “skills,” along with other factors like geography.

    The director of AI Programs at Oak Ridge explained the project to CNBC this way: “Basically, we are creating a digital twin for the U.S. labor market.”

    The overall finding, the researchers claim, is that current AI adoption accounts for 2.2% of “labor market wage value,” but that 11.7% of labor is exposed—ostensibly replaceable based on the model’s understanding of what a human can currently do that an AI software widget can also do.

    It should be noted that humans in actual jobs constantly work outside their job descriptions, handle exceptional and non-routine situations, and are—for now—uniquely capable of handling many of the social aspects of a given job. It’s not clear how the model accounts for this, although it does note that its findings are correlational not causal, and says “external factors—state investment, infrastructure, regulation—mediate how capability translates to impact.”

    However, the paper says, “Policymakers cannot wait for causal evidence of disruption before preparing responses.” In other words, AI is too urgent to get hung up on the limitations of the study, according to the study.

    [ad_2]

    Mike Pearl

    Source link

  • Santa Fe tackles rental rates with first-in-US minimum wage approach

    [ad_1]

    SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Santa Fe has long referred to itself as “The City Different” for its distinct atmosphere and a blending of cultures that stretches back centuries. Now, it’s trying something different — something officials hope will prevent a cultural erosion as residents are priced out of their homes.

    It’s the first city in the United States to directly link wages to housing affordability, aiming to counter high rents by tying minimum wage increases to consumer prices as well as fair market rental prices.

    Many see the new ordinance as a big step forward for workers, but Mayor Alan Webber also sees it as an important tool for addressing an affordability crisis that threatens the very fabric of Santa Fe.

    “The purpose is to make a serious difference in assuring that people who work here can live here,” he said. “Santa Fe’s history and culture is really reflected in the diversity of our people. It’s that diversity that we’re trying to preserve.”

    Santa Fe is not alone. Rising rents and housing prices have squeezed households nationwide, leaving many with less income to pay for other necessities. Experts say the financial pressure on renter households has increased compared to pre-pandemic conditions.

    How the ordinance works

    Santa Fe’s minimum wage will increase to $17.50 starting in 2027. The annual increase historically has been tied to consumer prices, but going forward a new blended formula will be used to calculate the annual increase, with the Consumer Price Index making up one half and fair market rent data making up the other.

    There’s a 5% cap in case costs skyrocket, and if consumer prices or rents tank in any particular year, the minimum wage will not be reduced.

    Santa Fe first adopted a living wage in 2002. The ordinance has been expanded over the years and the mission this time was to deal with median housing prices and rental costs that were far above any other major market in New Mexico.

    University of New Mexico finance professor Reilly White presented the city with 25 years of data that showed changes in fair market rents and consumer prices. He said people earning minimum wage were falling behind.

    “It became clear that any index that was made had to be duly weighted in favor of some of this real estate side and some of the cost of living side,” White said.

    Crafting the ordinance was like threading a needle, the mayor said, explaining that the aim was to benefit workers while not overly burdening the mom-and-pop shops that are the backbone of Santa Fe’s economy.

    Who benefits

    About 9,000 workers will see a bump in wages once the ordinance kicks in. That’s about 20% of the city’s workforce.

    Diego Ortiz will be among them. The 42-year-old father has called Santa Fe home for nearly three decades, working construction jobs to support his family.

    Choosing between paying rent, buying groceries and helping his children is a constant worry. He also talked about wanting his children to be able to focus on their studies. His son is having to delay school so he can work and save money, he said.

    “If there’s economic stability where we can get a good wage with the sweat of our brow, then we’re going to be able to pay our rent, pay our bills, or get a house,” he said. “Our families will be better and that will be a big change.”

    According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, the lowest income renters are disproportionately Black, Native American and Latino.

    “Raising the minimum wage is an important thing to do in terms of affordability. Certainly part of the problem is an income problem,” said Dan Emmanuel, a senior researcher with the coalition. But he also warned that raising wages wouldn’t address affordability for seniors or those with disabilities who are not part of the workforce but make up a large share of low-income renters.

    More tools

    Providing an income boost to a subset of the population also won’t necessarily resolve the underlying shortage of housing that’s driving up prices overall, said Issi Romem, an economist and fellow at the Terner Center for Housing Innovation at the University of California-Berkeley.

    That’s why Santa Fe officials say they’re working to permit more homes and apartment units.

    On the edge of town, leasing flags whipped in the wind Wednesday as construction crews were busy building new complexes with adjacent swaths of dirt cleared for more. Mayor Webber said the uptick in permitting already is paying off — rental prices grew by just 0.5% this year.

    Santa Fe also is counting on revenue from a so-called mansion tax, which targets home sales over $1 million, to fuel a trust fund for affordable housing projects.

    Webber said the stakes are high and the city must tackle affordability from every angle.

    “Can the people who work here afford to live here?” he asked. “Can we keep Santa Fe diverse? Can we continue to be ‘The City Different’ in spite of the economic pressures that are at work?”

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Santa Fe Tackles Rental Rates With First-In-US Minimum Wage Approach

    [ad_1]

    SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Santa Fe has long referred to itself as “The City Different” for its distinct atmosphere and a blending of cultures that stretches back centuries. Now, it’s trying something different — something officials hope will prevent a cultural erosion as residents are priced out of their homes.

    It’s the first city in the United States to directly link wages to housing affordability, aiming to counter high rents by tying minimum wage increases to consumer prices as well as fair market rental prices.

    Many see the new ordinance as a big step forward for workers, but Mayor Alan Webber also sees it as an important tool for addressing an affordability crisis that threatens the very fabric of Santa Fe.

    “The purpose is to make a serious difference in assuring that people who work here can live here,” he said. “Santa Fe’s history and culture is really reflected in the diversity of our people. It’s that diversity that we’re trying to preserve.”

    Santa Fe’s minimum wage will increase to $17.50 starting in 2027. The annual increase historically has been tied to consumer prices, but going forward a new blended formula will be used to calculate the annual increase, with the Consumer Price Index making up one half and fair market rent data making up the other.

    There’s a 5% cap in case costs skyrocket, and if consumer prices or rents tank in any particular year, the minimum wage will not be reduced.

    Santa Fe first adopted a living wage in 2002. The ordinance has been expanded over the years and the mission this time was to deal with median housing prices and rental costs that were far above any other major market in New Mexico.

    University of New Mexico finance professor Reilly White presented the city with 25 years of data that showed changes in fair market rents and consumer prices. He said people earning minimum wage were falling behind.

    “It became clear that any index that was made had to be duly weighted in favor of some of this real estate side and some of the cost of living side,” White said.

    Crafting the ordinance was like threading a needle, the mayor said, explaining that the aim was to benefit workers while not overly burdening the mom-and-pop shops that are the backbone of Santa Fe’s economy.

    About 9,000 workers will see a bump in wages once the ordinance kicks in. That’s about 20% of the city’s workforce.

    Diego Ortiz will be among them. The 42-year-old father has called Santa Fe home for nearly three decades, working construction jobs to support his family.

    Choosing between paying rent, buying groceries and helping his children is a constant worry. He also talked about wanting his children to be able to focus on their studies. His son is having to delay school so he can work and save money, he said.

    “If there’s economic stability where we can get a good wage with the sweat of our brow, then we’re going to be able to pay our rent, pay our bills, or get a house,” he said. “Our families will be better and that will be a big change.”

    According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, the lowest income renters are disproportionately Black, Native American and Latino.

    “Raising the minimum wage is an important thing to do in terms of affordability. Certainly part of the problem is an income problem,” said Dan Emmanuel, a senior researcher with the coalition. But he also warned that raising wages wouldn’t address affordability for seniors or those with disabilities who are not part of the workforce but make up a large share of low-income renters.

    Providing an income boost to a subset of the population also won’t necessarily resolve the underlying shortage of housing that’s driving up prices overall, said Issi Romem, an economist and fellow at the Terner Center for Housing Innovation at the University of California-Berkeley.

    That’s why Santa Fe officials say they’re working to permit more homes and apartment units.

    On the edge of town, leasing flags whipped in the wind Wednesday as construction crews were busy building new complexes with adjacent swaths of dirt cleared for more. Mayor Webber said the uptick in permitting already is paying off — rental prices grew by just 0.5% this year.

    Santa Fe also is counting on revenue from a so-called mansion tax, which targets home sales over $1 million, to fuel a trust fund for affordable housing projects.

    Webber said the stakes are high and the city must tackle affordability from every angle.

    “Can the people who work here afford to live here?” he asked. “Can we keep Santa Fe diverse? Can we continue to be ‘The City Different’ in spite of the economic pressures that are at work?”

    Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

    Photos You Should See – Nov. 2025

    [ad_2]

    Associated Press

    Source link

  • Fewer Americans sought unemployment benefits last week as layoffs remain low

    [ad_1]

    WASHINGTON — The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits declined last week in a sign that overall layoffs remain low, even as several high-profile companies have announced job cuts.

    U.S. applications for unemployment benefits in the week ending Nov. 22 dropped 6,000 from the previous week to 216,000, the Labor Department reported Wednesday. The figure is below the 230,000 forecast by economists, according to a survey by data provider FactSet.

    Applications for unemployment aid are seen as a proxy for layoffs and are close to a real-time indicator of the health of the job market. The job cuts announced recently by large companies such as UPS and Amazon typically take weeks or months to fully implement and may not yet be reflected in the claims data.

    The four-week average of claims, which softens some of the week-to-week volatility, dropped 1,000 to 223,750.

    For now, the U.S. job market appears stuck in a “low-hire, low-fire” state that has kept the unemployment rate historically low, but has left those out of work struggling to find a new job.

    The total number of Americans filing for jobless benefits for the week ending Nov. 15 rose 7,000 to 1.96 million, the government said. The increase is a sign that the unemployed are taking longer to find new work.

    Last week, the government said that hiring picked up a bit in September, when employers added 119,000 new jobs. Yet the report also showed employers had shed jobs in August. And the unemployment rate ticked up to 4.4%, its highest level in four years, as more Americans came off the sidelines to look for work but did not all immediately find jobs.

    On Tuesday, the government reported that retail sales slowed in September after three months of healthy increases. Consumer confidence plunged to its second-lowest level in five years, while wholesale inflation eased a bit.

    The data suggests that both the economy and inflation are slowing, which boosted financial markets’ expectations that the Federal Reserve will reduce its key interest rate at its next meeting Dec. 9-10.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • As Black women face unemployment challenges, policymaker roundtable seeks solutions

    [ad_1]

    In a packed room at library in a downtown Boston, Rep. Ayanna Pressley posed a blunt question: Why are Black women, who have some of the highest labor force participation rates in the country, now seeing their unemployment rise faster than most other groups?

    The replies Monday from policymakers, academics, business owners and community organizers laid out how economic headwinds facing Black women may indicate a troubling shift for the economy at large.

    The unemployment rate for Black women increased from 6.7% to 7.5% between August and September this year, the most recent month for available data because of the federal government shutdown.

    That compares with a 3.2% to 3.4% increase for white women over the same period. And it extended a year-long trend of the Black women’s unemployment rate increasing at a time of broad economic uncertainty.

    Many roundtable attendees view those numbers as both an affront and a warning about the uneven pressures on Black women.

    “Everyone is missing out when we’re pushed out of the workforce,” said Pressley, a progressive Democrat. “That is something that I worry about now, that you have all these women with specific expertise and specializations that we’re being deprived of.”

    And when Black women do have work, she said they tend to be “woefully underemployed.”

    Black women had the highest labor force participation rate of any female demographic in 2024, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, yet their unemployment rate remains higher than other demographics of women.

    Historically, their unemployment rate has trended slightly above the national average, widening during periods of slowed economic growth or recession. Black Americans are overrepresented in industries like retail, health and social services, and government administration, according to a 2024 Bureau of Labor Statistics Survey.

    “Black women are at the center of the Venn diagram that is our society,” said Anna Gifty Opoku-Agyeman, a PhD candidate in public policy and economics at the Harvard Kennedy School.

    She pointed to April as the month when Black women’s unemployment began to diverge more sharply from other groups. A policy agenda that ignores the causes, she said, could harm the broader economy.

    Roundtable participants cited many long-standing structural inequities but attributed most of the latest divergence to recent federal actions. They blamed the Trump administration’s downsizing of the Minority Business Development Agency and the cancellation of some federal contracts with non-profits and small businesses, saying those actions disproportionately impacted Black women. Others said tariff policies and mass federal layoffs also contributed to the strain.

    The administration’s opposition to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives was repeatedly mentioned by participants as a cause for a more hostile environment for Black women to find employment, customers or government contracting.

    There is no concrete data on how many Black federal workers were laid off, fired or otherwise dismissed as part of President Donald Trump’s sweeping cuts through the federal government.

    The attendees discussed a wide range of potential solutions to the unemployment rate for Black women, including using state budgets to bolster business development for Black women, expanding microloans to different communities, increasing government resources for contracting, requiring greater transparency on corporate hiring practices and encouraging state and federal officials to enforce anti-discrimination policies.

    “I feel like I was just at church,” said Ruthzee Louijeune, the Boston City Council president, as the meeting wrapped up. She encouraged attendees to keep up their efforts, and she defended DEI policies as essential to a healthy workforce and political system. Without broad-based efforts, the Democrat said, the country’s business and political leadership would be “abnormal” and weakened.

    “Any space that does not look like our country and like our cities is not normal,” she said, “and not the city or country we are trying to build.”

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Consumer Confidence Slides as Americans Grow Wary of High Costs and Sluggish Job Gains

    [ad_1]

    The Conference Board said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index dropped to 88.7 in November from an upwardly revised October reading of 95.5, the second-lowest reading since April, when President Donald Trump announced sweeping tariffs that caused the stock market to plunge.

    The figures suggest that Americans are increasingly wary of high costs and sluggish job gains, with perceptions of the labor market worsening, the survey found. Declining confidence could pose political problems for Trump and Republicans in Congress, as the dimmer views of the economy were seen among all political affiliations and were particularly sharp among independents, the Conference Board said.

    Earlier Tuesday, a government report showed that retail sales slowed in September after healthy readings over the summer. While economists forecast healthy growth for the July-September quarter, many expect a much weaker showing in the final three months of the year, largely because of the shutdown.

    Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

    Photos You Should See – Nov. 2025

    [ad_2]

    Associated Press

    Source link