Maia Usui is a student at Harvard Law School.
Yesterday was the 100th day of the Trump presidency, and the report cards are in. In an op-ed published in The Washington Post, President Trump maintained that he has “kept his promise[s]” to the American people. He pointed to his achievements in curbing immigration and overhauling the United States’ trade relationships. But there’s one area in which he has few concrete wins to show: jobs. The White House website claims that the Trump administration has created “over 500,000 new jobs” — but the number is probably closer to 300,000, and it’s far from clear whether Trump can take credit for those, according to NPR. The Washington Post looks ahead to what the President’s next steps will be, as he tackles tax reform with the hopes of stimulating job growth.
New research has confirmed what has long been suspected: income inequality reduces economic opportunity. In a new paper published in Science, Stanford economist Raj Chetty tracked rates of income mobility since the 1940s, finding a distinct downward trend: whereas 90% of children born in 1940 earned more than their parents at the age of 30, only 50% of children born in the 1980s have done the same. In the face of widening income disparities, the American dream could be “fading.” Read the accompanying essay from economists Lawrence Katz and Alan Krueger here.
Are women allowed to love their jobs? That’s the question that Jill Filipovic tackles in The New York Times this weekend, reflecting on a culture that values work as a crucial component of male identities, but “remains ambivalent about whether adult women working . . . is a good thing.” She suggests that, until this attitude changes, workplace reforms for women — however much needed — could be slow to materialize.
A Hollywood writers’ strike is looking more and more likely. The Writers Guild of America’s contract expires tomorrow, meaning that writers could be on strike as early as Tuesday. At the center of the dispute between the writers and the studios is the writers’ health insurance plan. The Los Angeles Times has more.
Finally, tomorrow is May Day. This year, a broad coalition of activists will be taking to the streets to protest the Trump administration — not only on labor issues, but also on policies relating to immigration, police brutality, and environmental justice, among others. Mother Jones has more.
Daily News & Commentary
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October 23
Employers increasingly shift health care costs onto workers and NYC proposes placing restrictions on fully automated customer service.
October 22
SCOTUS declines Wilcox appeal; Penn State research assistants win bargaining rights; SEIU sued over military leave firing.
October 21
DOL withdraws tipped-worker rule; Instacart settles hiring-bias claims; Phillips 66 locks out New Jersey refinery workers.
October 20
Korean unions oppose labor exemption bill; Portland city workers prepare for strike; UPenn grad student union looks to dismiss university filing
October 19
FDA reverses course on policy prohibiting off-duty union activity; FAA and NATCA reach deal to secure pay increase for air traffic controllers.
October 18
Federal judge again halts cancellation of the Bureau of Prisons’ CBA; tabletop gaming workers face roadblocks in union recognition.