Platform Companies Are Becoming More Powerful – But What Exactly Do They Want?

 – The New York Times 

Platform companies have hired economists to help conceptualize and manage the economies they’ve created. Google, Airbnb, Uber and Amazon have aggressively recruited professors and researchers to help understand what, exactly, they have on their hands, and how to expand, regulate and exploit it. What is certain is dominant platforms are reshaping the economy and in many ways, society.

 

Young Workers Face a Tougher Labor Market Even as The Economy Inches Towards Full Employment

– Economic Policy Institute 

Over the last several years, the economy has moved steadily towards full employment. While there is payroll employment growth at a rate faster than working-age population growth, a positive sign of a growing economy, there remains unrecovered work force participation and below-target wage growth. Both are clear signs of remaining economic room to grow — signaling that we haven’t yet reached genuine full employment.

 

In Many States, a Long-Awaited Raise for Low-Paid Workers

– The Pew Charitable Trusts

In 44 states, jobs paying roughly $30,000 were among those that got the largest salary bumps since 2010 — evidence that the steady but modest economic growth of the past half-decade may be reaching people at the bottom of the income ladder.

 

Robots Are Replacing Workers Where You Shop

– The Wall Street Journal 

Shopping is moving online, hourly wages are rising and retail profits are shrinking-a formula that pressures retailers, ranging from Wal-Mart to Tiffany & Co., to find technology that can do the rote labor of retail workers or replace them altogether. Self-checkout lanes can replace cashiers. Autonomous vehicles could handle package delivery or warehouse inventory. Even more complex tasks like suggesting what toy or shirt a shopper might want could be handled by a computer with access to a shopper’s buying history, similar to what already happens online today.