Labour

Review: An economic paradigm for ordinary people

6 Dec 2019

Nicholas Lemann’s “Transaction Man” shows how the post-1980 move from stable institutions to a deal-oriented economy benefited the rich and disempowered the rest. Active interest groups and pluralism could redress the balance. So would smaller businesses and lower overheads.

GM takes FCA to task over past and future slights

21 Nov 2019

Detroit’s top carmaker claims Fiat Chrysler bribed union officials to get a better deal than GM in contract talks. CEO Mary Barra’s crew even called out her almost-merger partner posthumously. The lawsuit smacks of payback, but its goal must be to gum up Fiat’s deal with Peugeot.

GM strike deal brings less relief than expected

16 Oct 2019

That’s because the month-long walkout didn’t hurt much. Union politics, chest-thumping by both sides and shareholder complacency prolonged talks that should have been more or less a formality. Workers suffered, but investors didn’t care much. GM got lucky with the timing.

Viewsroom: General Motors strike runs on hot air

10 Oct 2019

Workers downed tools over three weeks ago, despite last-minute concessions by the U.S. carmaker. Job-security fears are a sticking point. So is the union’s need to prove its worth after a kickbacks scandal. Plus: U.S. basketball plays smart defense on China’s Hong Kong backlash.

GE makes its own old age a bit more comfortable

7 Oct 2019

The indebted $75 bln U.S. conglomerate’s halt on defined-benefit pensions will make 20,000 employees’ retirements less flush. CEO Larry Culp’s transfer of value from workers to investors is awkward, but necessary – it makes GE’s debt more predictable as well as more manageable.

College football learns to play by market rules

3 Oct 2019

Young U.S. athletes generate $1 bln in revenue for their governing body – yet their rewards are tightly capped. When demand is high and the supply of elite talent low, as in football, something has to give. A new California law is a nod to what other industries realized long ago.

GM investors are not showing up for work, either

30 Sep 2019

Striking employees downed tools 15 days ago, and the $53 billion carmaker has lost more money than was initially priced in. The industrial action ought to have been easy to resolve. Now shareholders are ignoring it just as it’s starting to bite financially.

Climate strikes give governments cover to act

20 Sep 2019

Millions are downing textbooks and tools to demand more action against global warming. People power fueled a mass aversion to plastic. And many ideas and financing vehicles to enable the climate fight already exist. The worldwide protests allow politicians to take a tougher line.

GM strike is minor fender-bender, not car crash

16 Sep 2019

The $52 billion carmaker’s investors are pricing in a modest one-week earnings hit from union workers downing tools. It’s not like the old days: CEO Mary Barra gave in on key points before the UAW strike even began. That should bring members back to work within a few days.

Amazon has an ubersized labor problem

3 Sep 2019

California lawmakers want Uber and Lyft to treat drivers as employees. The firms’ alternative is to offer minimum wages and paid sick leave. Amazon has been quiet but increasingly relies on gig couriers without benefits. It’s time for Jeff Bezos’ firm to be part of the solution.

U.S. unions are in need of reinvention

30 Aug 2019

Labor Day originally celebrated full-time and fairly paid employment. The unions which helped win such jobs have declined, in part because the people doing them are now mostly comfortable. Organising workers who are left behind is harder, but would be good for the U.S. economy.

Uber labor bill risks straying from righteous road

29 Aug 2019

The ride-hailing giant’s home state of California wants gig-economy firms to give workers paid vacation and sick time, following similar cases in Europe. Yet some old-school industries may get carve-outs. That would be a pity. It’s a chance to rethink protections for all earners.

Hadas: What a new hip taught me about economics

3 Apr 2019

As the codeine wore off, I pondered the mass delivery of individualised care. My lessons: Adam Smith was wrong about specialised labour’s inhumanity, Karl Marx was mostly wrong about class conflict, Max Weber was right about bureaucracy and free markets can’t cure medical ills.

Lufthansa’s next challenge will be domestic

15 Mar 2018

The German airline is reaping the rewards of a 2014 plan to take on no-frills giants like Ryanair. Barring an unexpected rise in oil prices, Chief Executive Carsten Spohr’s next challenge will be to fight off cut-price competitors when they try to encroach on his home turf.

Ryanair buyback can only cushion so much turbulence

5 Feb 2018

The no-frills airline boosted earnings in the three months to December but faces a squeeze from pilot salary demands and still-low fares. A 750 mln euro share buyback will smooth the bumps for investors. But it cannot offset the transition to a lower-growth, higher-cost future.

U.S. flu-shot savings are nothing to sneeze at

25 Jan 2018

A harsh influenza strain is knocking more Americans flat this winter. The tab for medical care should exceed $10 bln, while lost work days will take an even larger toll on companies. Offering free shots for all would be a cost-effective way for society to reduce the burden.

German workers may frustrate ECB’s inflation hopes

9 Jan 2018

Industrial staff in Europe’s biggest economy are striking for higher pay. They may, however, trim wage demands in return for flexible working. If pay pressures fail to flare in such a tight labour market, the European Central Bank can hardly count on them surfacing elsewhere.

Review: Why Brexit will ultimately please nobody

15 Dec 2017

Britons voted to leave the EU for myriad and conflicting reasons, according to “Brexit and British Politics”. It’s hard to see a settlement that addresses them all. The risk is that voters see Brexit as another betrayal by politicians, fuelling the disaffection that caused it.

Twin tailwinds help Ryanair weather pilot crisis

31 Oct 2017

The 20 bln euro no-frills airline will meet its full-year profit goal despite a rostering mess that cost it thousands of flights. Passenger numbers were up 11 pct in the six months to September. Ryanair’s fare cuts helped, but it also got lucky with rivals’ bankruptcies.

Holding: GrubHub serves up a gig-employment pickle

11 Sep 2017

If the $5 bln food-takeout service wins a rare trial over the job status of workers, discontent could grow in a labor force demanding more benefits. A loss, though, may put the so-called sharing economy at risk. It’s time for a sector that shuns regulation to work with Uncle Sam.