In The News

Wanted: Competent Foreigners to Work for Ukrainian Government

Olena Lennon October 27, 2015
Ukraine is in political and economic turmoil after Russia’s takeover of Crimea and support of separatists in the eastern part of the nation. The government cannot afford inefficiencies, and a new law allows the government led by President Petro Poroshenko to hire foreigners for top ministerial posts. The goal is to curtail corruption and encourage innovation. “While the process has been eased for...

The Long, Uphill Fight to End Restaurant Tipping

Peter Moskowitz October 26, 2015
New York City reports that international visitors account for about half of all tourism direct spending. One wrinkle for restaurant workers: The United States for the most part stands alone in mandating a low minimum wage for servers - $2.13 nationwide and near $5 in New York – forcing them to rely on customer tips. Peter Moskowitz, writing for Vice, points out that servers can earn anywhere from...

Live Longer, Consume Less: Recipe for Slow Growth

Joergen Oerstroem Moeller October 20, 2015
Global growth no longer keeps the pace of just a decade ago. Researcher Joergen Oerstroem Moeller points to behaviors that contribute to reduced consumption: Life expectancy has risen, but ages for collecting pensions have remained steady at around age 60, thus stretching out the retirement stage of life. Fearing poverty, combined with increased uncertainty over government regulations and social...

Matteo Renzi, Scrapper in the Swamp

Joji Sakurai October 19, 2015
A challenge for Europe is that many talented, skilled young adults cannot find work. Italy’s Prime Minister Matteo Renzi would like to jumpstart the economy by “breaking it open to competition,” journalist Joji Sakurai explains for the New Statesman. Italy confronts “a struggle of allegiances versus globalisation; gerontocracy versus meritocracy; made-in-Italy quality versus stark economic...

The Future of Work: The Risks of Industrial Globalization

Evangelina Argueta September 23, 2015
Ongoing investments by multinational corporations in various industries standardize labor practices. With technology contributing to increased productivity and reducing the number of jobs, less priority is assigned to labor rights or training workers to adapt. “Commercial agreements and free trade treaties between developed countries and undeveloped countries are deficient in the protection of...

Indian Job Ad Receives 2.3 Million Applicants

Victor Mallet September 21, 2015
India will soon outpace China as the world’s most populated nation and a young population is expected to energize the nation's economy. A job advertisement for tea boys and night guards has drawn 2.3 applicants, including college graduates. Policymakers, parents and young workers are alarmed. “The unprecedented deluge of applications is the latest confirmation of the grim employment...

The Bitter Story Behind the UK's National Drink

Justin Rowlatt and Jane Deith September 11, 2015
Tea is marketed as a symbol of relaxation and civilized culture, but reports emerge of poor conditions for workers on tea estates. “The joint investigation by Radio 4's File on Four and BBC News in Assam, north-east India, found workers living in broken houses with terrible sanitation,” reports BBC News. “Living and working conditions are so bad, and wages so low, that tea workers and their...