A SURVEY OF COMPANIES in the Greater Boston area indicates nearly half of their employees will continue to work remotely after concerns about COVID-19 subside, suggesting major changes are in […]
Economics
Posted inEconomy
Unemployment in Lawrence is 31%
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE THE HIGHEST-IN-THE-NATION unemployment rate in Massachusetts declined slightly in July, but the statewide figure masks wide disparities in the state of joblessness across different areas of […]
Posted inEconomy
Faneuil Hall tenants, landlord in standoff
THE LANDLORD AND TENANTS at Faneuil Hall Marketplace in Boston seem to be at a standoff, with the landlord refusing tenant demands for more modifications of the existing lease agreements […]
Posted inUncategorized
It’s a renter’s market in Boston
“IT’S A RENTER’S MARKET” hasn’t been uttered in the Greater Boston area for over a decade, but now it’s being heard over and over again as landlords cut their prices […]
Posted inOpinion
Minimum guaranteed income = solution to poverty
IN THE WEEKS leading up to his assassination in 1968, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. launched a new chapter of his work, referred to as the “Poor People’s Campaign.” This […]
Posted inEducation
Worcester officials fed up with Charter/Spectrum
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN internet service is a barrier to remote learning? And what happens when resolving the internet access problem is in the hands of a private company, which holds a […]
Posted inEconomy
Two Boston nonprofits merging
TWO HISTORIC BOSTON nonprofits – the Jewish Vocational Service and the Boston Center for Adult Education – are merging to increase workplace and educational opportunities for unemployed and underemployed adults. […]
Posted inOpinion
Apprenticeships can also work in white-collar professions
FOR GENERATIONS, Massachusetts industries have used apprenticeships to develop young talent and build expertise in demanding blue-collar fields, often working hand-in-hand with government agencies. As we cope with the impact […]
Posted inOpinion
Don’t pull the plug on thoroughbreds
IN THE HEYDAY of thoroughbred racing in New England in the 1970s, you could watch live thoroughbred racing at 10 different racing venues, including seven fairground racetracks from Great Barrington […]
Posted inEconomy
Many businesses closed by COVID are not coming back
THE GREEN BEAN in Northampton was the type of breakfast and lunch place where people would visit daily, hold work meetings, meet their future spouse, or break up with a […]
Posted inEconomy
Mass. unemployment claims unexpectedly increase
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE NEW STANDARD UNEMPLOYMENT claims in Massachusetts bounced back up last week after nine straight weeks of decline, even as claims at the national level continued to […]
Posted inEconomy
Businesses like new PPP rules
PRESIDENT TRUMP on Friday signed into law a measure that business owners in Massachusetts say will make it a lot easier for them to take advantage of federal aid to keep their companies afloat. The new law changes the […]
Posted inEconomy
Reopening expected to be slow, cautious
EXPECTATIONS ARE RUNNING HIGH that Gov. Charlie Baker will begin to throw open the economy on Monday, but sources say the coming week will see relatively few changes. Business groups […]
Posted inEconomy
A failure to communicate in North Adams
CRANE STATIONERY CO. in North Adams needs to do a better job of communicating. On April 29, the company’s chief operations officer, Dean Daigle, sent an email to employees that most […]
Posted inUncategorized
Boston Globe announces layoffs
THE BOSTON GLOBE laid off two union employees and an unspecified number of nonunion employees on Wednesday in response to a downturn in revenue caused by the COVID-19 business shutdown. […]
Posted inEconomy
Sewing machine firm expands into PPE
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER on Tuesday showcased a Fall River sewing machine manufacturer that has expanded during the COVID-19 crisis into the production of personal protection equipment and is now expecting […]
Posted inEconomy
The ‘new normal’: A mask-wearing, young workforce?
A POWERFUL COALITION of Massachusetts business leaders has laid out an extensive roadmap for reopening the economy – but not, they warned, to return to what used to be considered […]
Posted inOpinion
To revive economy, think infrastructure
THAT WE LIVE in uncertain and unprecedented times is a fact that does not need to be impressed on anyone. Over the past six weeks, it’s been forced upon all […]
Posted inEconomy
25% of state workforce files jobless claims
NEARLY 900,000 MASSACHUSETTS workers, representing almost a quarter of the state’s entire labor force, have filed new claims for unemployment benefits since mid-March as the COVID-19 pandemic and the widespread […]
Posted inEconomy
2d Paycheck Protection Program set to go
BANKS ARE PREPARING to submit applications for the second round of federal loans to businesses as coronavirus shutdowns continue to impact the income of US firms. The Small Business Administration […]
Posted inEconomy
Virus notes: Gig workers can now apply for unemployment
A RANGE OF WORKERS previously ineligible for unemployment benefits can now seek state aid if they are unable to work because of the COVID-19 outbreak and its impacts on public […]
Posted inOpinion
Don’t let Big Gig game the system
IN ITS SWEEPING RESPONSE to the coronavirus pandemic, Congress threw a financial lifeline to millions of Americans and made so-called “gig economy” workers, like Uber drivers, eligible for unemployment assistance […]
Posted inOpinion
COVID-19 segregating our economy
IT’S NOW CLEAR that COVID-19 is disproportionately infecting and killing people of color across the country. Over the coming months, the economic dimension of this crisis will also disproportionately harm […]
Posted inOpinion
COVID-19 outbreak shows importance of unions
IF CRISES EXPOSE the underlying dynamics of a society, the coronavirus pandemic has starkly demonstrated the different options available to workers in unions and those who are not. Unionized nurses, […]
