Opinion
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Time to End Long-Term Unemployment Benefits
Opinion -The U.S. Senate this week voted to proceed to legislation that would extend long-term unemployment benefits for another three months, at a cost of $6.4 billion to taxpayers. -
Japan Repudiates Greenhouse Gas Cuts
Opinion -Japanese officials have announced the nation is going back on a pledge to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Japan had previously pledged to reduce carbon dioxide emissions to 25 percent below 1990 levels by the year 2020. -
$15 An Hour Minimum Wage at Seattle-Tacoma Squeaks to Victory
Opinion -It took three weeks of ballot counting before the people of SeaTac, Wash., learned voters there had approved a new minimum wage of $15 an hour. SeaTac Proposition 1 received 3,040 votes in favor versus 2,963 against to win by a 77-vote margin. -
California Pensions for Teachers Fall Farther Behind
Opinion -Saddled with a massive debt on what is needed to meet its pension obligations the California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS) added more than $4.0 billion to that debt in 2012 because it chose to underfund its so-called “catch-up” payment. -
Some Federal Contractors Balking at New Employment Rules
Opinion -When it comes to hiring the right person for the job, Tom Roeser prefers to do it his way over that of the government telling him how to do it. -
The New Vicious Cycle of Student Loan Debt
Opinion -Generally, the idea of going to college is not to just get a job but to begin a career. -
Hair-Braiders Sue for Freedom to Teach
Opinion -Should African hair-braiders have to build an entire barber college and become state-approved barbering instructors in order to teach hair-braiding? -
Illinois Court Upholds Woman’s Right to Earn a Living, Ending Two-Year Struggle
Opinion -More than two years after she applied to the city government in Bloomington, Illinois for a license to operate a late-night van service, Julie Crowe finally will be allowed to start her business, thanks to a court decision upholding her right to earn a -
Report: Right-to-Work States Have More Income Growth and Employment
Opinion -Over the past six decades, states with right-to-work laws experienced greater improvements in average annual employment, real personal income, and population growth than those states would have experienced without right-to-work, a new study by the -
NJ Cops, Others Collecting Millions in Disability Benefits . . . and Paychecks
Opinion -Meet New Jersey’s “disabled” double-dippers. They receive two sets of checks from the state – one for working and another because they cannot work: As a lawyer for Gov. -
$620 Billion Promised, Only $62 Billion Set Aside in Illinois
Opinion -Opponents of pension reform try to downplay Illinois' $100 billion in official pension debt because it's "not due at one point in time." They like to compare the pension debt to a "mortgage," which is paid over 30 years. -
Report Offers Solutions for Pension Reforms
Opinion -The bankruptcy filing of Detroit and the nearly unprecedented triple-downgrade of Chicago’s general obligation debt by Moody’s Investors Service this summer have garnered national headlines, but the pension problems that were cited as major reasons for -
Seven Illinois Public Universities Hit With Credit Downgrades
Opinion -Moody’s Investors Service has downgraded the credit ratings of seven public universities in Illinois. Illinois state government already has the worst credit rating of any state in the nation. -
Your Tax Dollars at Work . . . to Harass Employers Over Wages
Opinion -Labor activists using tactics adopted from the Occupy Wall Street movement are crashing restaurants across the nation in an effort to raise wages for workers – and they’re receiving taxpayer money to fund the effort. -
New Mexico, Other States Crush Jobs Through Licensing Requirements
Opinion -Does New Mexico really need somebody to have two years of experience and take two exams before the person can repair a door? Or two years of training to install a security alarm? -
Washington City Moves Toward Nation’s Highest Minimum Wage, Other Perks
Opinion -The city of SeaTac, Wash., might boast the nation’s highest minimum wage if voters pass an initiative this November. -
Michigan No Longer Skimming Money from Home Caregivers for Labor Union
Opinion -The Service Employees International Union is no longer able to claim millions of dollars annually from family caregivers in Michigan. In 2005, under the administration of Gov. -
Study Shows Need to End Secrecy in Government Union Collective Bargaining
Opinion -Secret negotiations over employment contracts between union representatives and government officials are the norm in nearly every state in the union. -
Florida Supreme Court Upholds Law Requiring Pension Contributions
Opinion -Florida’s public school teachers, state and county workers, and some municipal employees must send 3 percent of their pay to the state’s pension plan, according to a 4-3 ruling of the Florida Supreme Court. -
PA Senate President Backs Plan to Stop ‘Bleeding’ of Pensions
Opinion -Calling it a way to “stop the bleeding” in the state’s public pension systems, Pennsylvania Senate President Joe Scarnati (R-Jefferson) says he would support a proposal to move all new hires into a new pension system similar to the 401(k) plans that are -
Governor Wants to Reduce Iowa State Workers’ Contract Perks
Opinion -Want a job that fully covers health insurance premiums? How about one that pays more money if you work a later shift? And provides stipends for clothes and shoes? -
Milton Friedman: What’s Wrong with Welfare?
Opinion -In this video, Nobel-Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman examines the modern welfare state and discusses why it doesn't work in the long run. As we're now seeing, the long run appears to be catching up with America. -
Michigan Acts to Free Workers from Abusive Labor Unions
Opinion -Bills that would make Michigan the 24th right-to-work state in the nation passed in the House and Senate on Dec. 11, with the backing of Gov. Rick Snyder (R), who signed them into law later that day. -
Illinois Legislature Sends Signal to Governor, Unions: No Raises
Opinion -State workers hoping to receive annual pay raises in the coming years will have to wait for the State of Illinois to creep back from the edge of an unprecedented fiscal cliff. That’s the message desperate lawmakers and other officials are sending to Gov.
