Employment

Scarce U.S. workers can be found on Etsy

17 Dec 2021

Millions of Americans ditched their jobs and became self-employed in the pandemic, with about 20% in retail. Outlets like crafts-seller site Etsy benefited. But businesses are strained and competing to pay for workers. Resolutions – like increasing immigration – only help so much.

Powell finds labor participation is a poison pill

5 Nov 2021

The U.S. jobless rate falling to 4.6% should cheer the Fed chair. But the share of those not actively seeking work remains high and rose in the Black population. Jay Powell made inclusive employment a criteria for raising rates, but inflation may present him with tough choices.

Capital Calls: Worker shortages spread to IT staff

14 Oct 2021

Concise views on global finance: It’s not just lorry drivers and warehouse labourers who are in short supply. British white-collar recruiter Hays on Thursday reported record revenue from finding technology employees.

Aussie fiscal bazooka could use a safety feature

13 Oct 2021

The country’s flagship pandemic support programme distributed some A$70 bln in six months to save jobs. At least 20% of funds, however, wound up in businesses whose sales actually grew, a new Treasury report says. A clawback provision would make good policy even better.

Capital Calls: U.S. jobs, $7 bln tax settlement

3 Sep 2021

Concise views on global finance: Slow U.S. job growth signals caution for the Fed; meanwhile, a giant deal between hedge fund executives and the IRS gives legs to President Biden's tax plans.

Capital Calls: U.S. jobs, Didi probe, Pharma LBO

2 Jul 2021

Concise views on global finance: The U.S. added 850,000 jobs in June but the recovery isn't happening everywhere. Meanwhile, Didi is hit with an investigation by a Chinese regulator days after its U.S. listing, and a pharma buyout by EQT and Goldman is a game of hot potato.

Chinese buyout provides instructive exit interview

22 Jun 2021

After months of talks, Japan’s Recruit is backing a $5.7 bln privatisation of employment portal 51job. Growth is patchy while rival Kanzhun’s shares have soared following its IPO. It’s a timely reminder of the occupational hazards for investors in U.S.-listed Chinese companies.

Workers get the whip hand in economic policymaking

19 May 2021

New Zealand will cut low-skilled migration, U.S. President Joe Biden is hiking the minimum wage for federal contractors, and rate-setters everywhere are giving labour markets time to tighten. Such measures will help push up pay. Expect profit margins to fall or prices to rise.

Powell’s inequality goals put him over his skis

17 Mar 2021

The Fed boss wants to close the racial employment gap that widened as a result of the pandemic. But helpful policies are outside of Powell’s mandate, and stimulus might actually exacerbate the problem. The consequence is the economy could overheat before the gap closes.

Viewsroom: Greensill/Credit Suisse, GE, Diversity

11 Mar 2021

Big names in finance, like Credit Suisse and tycoon Sanjeev Gupta, are suffering collateral damage from the UK supply chain lender’s collapse. The sale of aircraft leasing brings GE closer to CEO Larry Culp’s light-bulb moment. And working from home risks a diversity disaster.

U.S. jobs jump masks big challenges

5 Mar 2021

The economy added 379,000 positions last month as temporarily laid-off workers were rehired. But there was little change in the number of long-term unemployed and the Black jobless rate rose to nearly 10%. This suggests the Fed’s wait for full employment will be a long one.

The Exchange: The post-pandemic global economy

2 Mar 2021

Policymakers will face tricky choices about when to withdraw massive policy support as economic recovery kicks in. BNP Paribas’ group chief economist, William De Vijlder, joins Swaha Pattanaik to discuss their options, the focus on inclusive growth and the outlook for inflation.

Aussie jobs firm careers into a messy overhaul

24 Feb 2021

Shares in $8 bln Seek tanked 14% on plans to break in two, lose its founder-CEO and cut its prized stake in Zhaopin. At 14 times EBITDA, the sale values the Chinese unit in line with rivals but lower than Seek’s frothy multiple. Management and investors both deserve a bad review.

Europe is now the main front in gig economy war

19 Feb 2021

Britain’s top court ruled that a group of Uber drivers are entitled to worker rights. Spain is also cracking down. It’s a stark contrast to America, where a California ballot win gave the sector hope. Tougher rules mean a longer path to profit – and higher prices for consumers.

Fed’s jobs push needs any help, including IBM’s

11 Feb 2021

Big Blue is rethinking U.S. employee needs. More than half of its openings no longer require a bachelor’s degree, for example. It's one way to meet the challenge of the post-Covid economy, in which employers can't fill vacancies even as the central bank boss frets over lost jobs.

Biden’s minimum wage hike is worth jobs tradeoff

9 Feb 2021

Critics of the U.S. president's $1.9 trln stimulus plan got a boost from a report suggesting that upping the federal pay floor to $15 an hour could cost 1.4 mln jobs. It would, though, reduce poverty. Corporate America can afford it; struggling small businesses may need leeway.

Job market will be weak link in global recovery

20 Jan 2021

Vaccines are set to end stop-start lockdowns and boost GDP. But that’s when efforts to limit jobless rates may be wound up. And bankruptcies will surge everywhere after last year’s bailouts tided businesses over. Growing labour insecurity could jeopardise the economic upturn.

Corona Capital: U.S. jobs, Covid-19 tests

8 Jan 2021

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: The U.S. job recovery is stalling as the pandemic surges, increasing the chances of more stimulus; a Covid-19 testing startup may be the reason for a rise in cases in Los Angeles.

Generational wealth gap warrants post-Covid reset

30 Dec 2020

Young people had a shrinking share of housing and equity riches even before the pandemic, which hurt them further by boosting unemployment and state debt. Shifting the tax burden to wealth, rather than income, would help. So would the radical option of millennial cash handouts.

Corona Capital: Poverty, Beer cans, Budget hotels

24 Dec 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Hong Kong’s poverty problem was getting worse even before the virus struck; AB InBev sells the family aluminium to cut debt; Whitbread, owner of hotel chain Premier Inn, tries to get its landlords to share the pain.