San José, CA – On Friday, May 7, the U.S. Department of Labor reported that businesses added 266,000 workers. This was only one-quarter of the additional 1 million jobs that economists had predicted. This left the economy down more than 8 million jobs from February of 2020, right before the economic crisis started. At the current rate it will take the economy more than two and half years to gain back the lost jobs Women have been harder hit by the recession, and the gap with men widened in April as all of the net new jobs went to men.
San José, CA – On Friday, May 7, the U.S. Department of Labor reported that businesses added 266,000 workers. This was only one-quarter of the additional 1 million jobs that economists had predicted. This left the economy down more than 8 million jobs from February of 2020, right before the economic crisis started. At the current rate it will take the economy more than two and half years to gain back the lost jobs Women have been harder hit by the recession, and the gap with men widened in April as all of the net new jobs went to men.
Chicago, IL – Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot has acknowledged that cases on COVID-19 are on the rise again in Chicago, yet she is sticking to her plan to reopen Chicago high schools in two weeks, without addressing ongoing safety concerns from teachers and from the community.
$1.9 trillion COVID relief is badly needed, but more needs to be done
San José, CA – This past week, on March 11, Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives, U.S. Senate, and White House passed a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 rescue law without the support of a single Republican in the House or the Senate. The law provides much-needed relief for millions of people whose finances have been wounded by the pandemic. Yet much more needs to be done, especially in the fight against the growing economic inequality.
San José, CA – Even as the COVID-19 pandemic continued to subside during mid-February, layoffs were on the rise, showing that we are nowhere near the end of the tunnel for workers in this country. For the week ending February 13, the U.S. Department of Labor reported that there were 861,000 new applications for regular state unemployment insurance, an increase of 13,000 over the previous week. Applications for the federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program for gig workers and the self-employed rose by a much larger 174,427 the same week, to 516,299 new claims. Together, this meant that almost 190,000 working people had to file for government aid because of layoffs and business closures.
Chicago, IL – After midnight on Wednesday, February 10, the Chicago Teachers Union officially certified ballot results ratifying an agreement between the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) and Chicago Public Schools (CPS) that will provide a framework for returning to in-person learning in Chicago Public Schools. The vote to ratify the agreement passed by just over a two thirds majority. However, the union has been clear that they do not feel that this plan is what the teachers or students and community deserve. They say it is disgraceful that the Chicago Public School System could not delay reopening for a few weeks to ramp up vaccinations and preparations in schools, and that the mayor and CPS leadership were willing to do even further harm to the school district to maintain their posture. They say this is a stain on the record of the administration.
San José, CA – on Friday, January 8 the U.S. Department of Labor released its monthly report on the state of the job market. While mainstream economists expected economic growth to continue to slow with only 50,000 new jobs, down from a gain of 330,000 jobs in November, the reality was much worse. In December, 140,000 jobs were lost, the first month of losses since the dark days of April. The year ended with 9.8 million fewer jobs than before the recession began, a record high going back to 1939, and almost twice as bad as the previous recession year of 2009. President Trump became the first president since Republican Herbert Hoover set to leave office with a net job loss.
Tucson, AZ – As the state of Arizona reached the highest rate in the world of daily confirmed COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people, hundreds of Arizona educators prepared a sick-out to demand two weeks of virtual learning. In the Chandler School District, the educator’s union’s consistent organizing efforts achieved big wins.
Minneapolis, MN – More than 30 mothers, parents, children and supporters who work for Hennepin County gathered at Painter Park, December 19, to call on Hennepin County Commissioners to hold an emergency board meeting to pass COVID Childcare and Caregiver Leave at full pay until schools and daycares are fully functional.
