About 7 years ago

06/06/2017 - Midnight Reads – We May Be Closer to Full Employment Than It Seemed. That’s Bad News

We May Be Closer to Full Employment Than It Seemed. That’s Bad News

– The New York Times 

The May job numbers raise a depressing possibility: that this is as good as it will get for the United States labor market. At first glance, the new numbers seem like a bit of a mystery. The unemployment rate fell to a 16-year low, yet job creation slowed and the number of people who are neither working nor looking for work rose. But the data aren’t really inconsistent. Rather, they point to a job market that is pretty close to full employment — where workers who want a job can find one fairly easily, but low unemployment isn’t pulling workers into the labor force en masse.
What It’s Like in Places Where Unemployment Is Too Low

– The Wall Street Journal 

Three counties in Colorado — Baca, Summit and Yuma — have the lowest unemployment in the country, which is making things tricky for area employers and residents. “It’s a good problem to have on some level, but it is a business concern because in order to have economic growth, you need to have an available supply of labor,” said Mark Melnik, the director of economic and public policy research at UMass Donahue Institute in Massachusetts.

 

NLRB’s Budget Slashed: What Could It Mean to Your Business?

– National Law Review 

President Donald Trump has released a budget proposal reducing the National Labor Relations Board’s funding in fiscal year 2018 by nearly six percent. It also calls for significant staff reductions at a time when the agency’s caseload is projected to increase. What could the budget cut mean for your business? The budget has not been passed by Congress, and there likely will be significant congressional debate over funding of the NLRB (and other agencies, such as the Department of Labor, which also may face significant budget cuts). If the budget passes with significant cuts, expect the results discussed in this article.

 

What Gets Stolen from Restaurants? Everything

– Bloomberg 

It’s gone way beyond silver spoons; just about anything is up for grabs in dining rooms these days. Bloomberg gathered tales of significant items that have been taken from restaurants, from the seemingly worthless (Why would you want that?) to the unwieldy (How do you steal a 6-foot tree?).