New Yorker (August 17)
“Since last November, many business leaders, and even the representatives of some labor groups, have cooperated with Trump on the grounds that he is the duly elected President, and they want their voices heard in the White House’s policymaking process. But, in terms of reputational risk and personal moral calculus, the price of accommodating Trump” has increased dramatically. Trump now occupies a place in the political firmament where it is becoming almost as risky for corporate chieftains to associate with him as it is for them to distance themselves.”
Tags: Accommodating, Business leaders, Cooperated, Distance, Labor, Moral calculus, Policymaking, Reputational risk, Trump
Reuters (May 14)
“Desperate to overcome Japan’s growing shortage of labor, mid-sized companies are planning to buy robots and other equipment to automate a wide range of tasks, including manufacturing, earthmoving and hotel room service…. If the investment ambitions are fulfilled it would show there is a silver lining as Japan tries to cope with a shrinking and rapidly aging population. It could help equipment-makers, lift the country’s low productivity and boost economic growth.”
Tags: Aging, Automate, Desperate, Economic growth, Japan, Labor, Manufacturing, Productivity, Robots, Shortage, Silver lining
New York Times (February 21)
“While not as dangerous as protectionism and xenophobia,” blaming robots for job losses and economic disruption “is also a distraction from real problems and real solutions.” We’ve been through this before. “Automation is the hero of the story in good times and the villain in bad. Since today’s middle class is in the midst of a prolonged period of wage stagnation, it is especially vulnerable to blame-the-robot rhetoric.” Bad policies can result in disruption, but economic history has repeatedly shown “that automation not only substitutes for human labor, it complements it. The disappearance of some jobs and industries gives rise to others.”
Tags: Automation, Dangerous, Disruption, Jobs, Labor, Protectionism, Robots, Wage stagnation, Xenophobia
USA Today (May 8)
Though it may seem preposterous, a labor shortage will strike the U.S. “America is about to run short of workers for the simple reason that people are retiring.” In the coming decade, the retirement age population is expected to expand by 37.8% while the working age population will only increase by 3.2%. Those set to retire “will leave jobs while continuing to buy things—food, shelter, haircuts, airplane tickets health care and more—which will have to be produced by the remaining workforce.”
Wall Street Journal (February 20)
“Wal-Mart’s decision proves that the best way to raise wages is with faster economic growth that creates more demand for labor. Workers can move to better opportunities as more emerge, and their current employers may conclude they have to pay more to keep them.” Wal-Mart will significantly exceed the current U.S. minimum wage of $7.25 when it raises its hourly wage to $9 or more by April and to at least $10 in 2016.
Tags: Demand, Economic growth, Labor, Opportunities, U.S., Wages, Wal-Mart, Workers
Investment Week (May 19)
At just 3.6%, Japan’s unemployment rate is extremely low and this should promote inflation. “Labour shortages have already driven wages higher for part-time workers. Adding to this, the demand to provide new infrastructure for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo and the need to replace equipment should also serve to further stimulate the economy.” The OECD has forecast that “only Japan, New Zealand, and Israel are expected to grow faster than their previously forecasted GDPs in 2014.”
Tags: 2020 Olympics, Economy, Equipment, GDP, Inflation, Infrastructure, Israel, Japan, Labor, New Zealand, OECD, Shortage, Tokyo, Unemployment rate, Wages, Workers
Washington Post (April 15, 2013)
“The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) faces a financial death spiral. Burdened by excess infrastructure, outmoded regulations and high labor costs — not to mention facing digital-age obsolescence — USPS posted an operating loss of $15.9 billion in fiscal 2012 and is on course to lose an estimated $7.9 billion in fiscal 2013.”
Tags: Digital age, Infrastructure, Labor, Operating loss, Regulations, U.S., USPS
The Economist (March 10, 2012)
“The end of cheap China is at hand. Blue-collar labour costs in Guangdong and other coastal hubs have been rising at double-digit rates for a decade. Workers in the hinterland, too, are demanding—and receiving—huge pay increases. China is no longer a place where manufacturers can go to find ultra-cheap hands.”
“The end of cheap China is at hand. Blue-collar labour costs in Guangdong and other coastal hubs have been rising at double-digit rates for a decade. Workers in the hinterland, too, are demanding—and receiving—huge pay increases. China is no longer a place where manufacturers can go to find ultra-cheap hands.”
Tags: China, Labor, Manufacturing, Rising pay
