Category Archives: Labor/Economics

Obama’s Economic Legacy Could Benefit from Falling Energy Prices

Posted on 01/20/2013 by Gregory McIsaac

Energy prices have gone through boom and bust cycles in the past, and there is a possibility that current prices could decline as during in the 1980s, which fueled a rapid expansion of employment and GDP. Even though presidents have … Continue reading →

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Moody’s Shows It Has Political Agenda for U.S. Fiscal Policy

Posted on 10/12/2012 by Mark Weisbrot

By Mark Weisbrot This article was first published in The Guardian (UK) on September 13, 2012, www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/sept/13/moodys. If anyone wants to reprint it, please include a link to the original. Moody’s threat Wednesday to downgrade the U.S. government’s credit rating … Continue reading →

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LEARN ABOUT THE INTERSECTION OF IMMIGRANT AND WORKER RIGHTS

Posted on 10/12/2012 by Public i

Immigrant rights, worker rights―what’s the connection? The East Central Illinois Jobs with Justice (ECIJWJ) Chapter is hosting a multi-media presentation on the Coalition of Immokalee Workers that will address this question. Part of a month-long examination of the problems and … Continue reading →

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Flex-n-Gate Disaster, Just the Latest Chapter in a Toxic Story

Posted on 09/08/2012 by Ricky Baldwin

By Ricky Baldwin When news broke this summer that a toxic cloud of sulfuric acid at a local plant had sent eleven local workers to the hospital, horrific as the story was, many in the area were not all that … Continue reading →

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My Experiences with Worker-Owned Businesses

Posted on 09/08/2012 by Belden Fields

Walter Matherly       (Bio–After six years working in Africa and Latin America for the International Division of The Borden Company in 1954, Walter Matherly got a graduate degree in Economics from Duke and began a career in economic … Continue reading →

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CAPITALISM IS NOT IN CRISIS

Posted on 06/30/2012 by Michael Brun

Though many suffer, the crash of 2008 was not as system threatening as in 1929. The financial turmoil of the past five years reminds many of the crash of 1929, which led into the Great Depression of the 1930s.  That … Continue reading →

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New Generation of Argentine Cooperatives for development and real democracy: The Case of Initia

Posted on 06/30/2012 by Arnaldo Soltermann

 Arnaldo T. Soltermann is Development Laboratory Director, for the Chemistry Department, Rio Cuarto National University. Republic Argentina. He is also President of Initia Workers Cooperative of Argentina. Professor Soltermann is currently on a short visit to the Chemistry Department at … Continue reading →

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U of I Adds Insult to Injury and AFSCME Fights Back

Posted on 06/28/2012 by Belden Fields

by K. D. Swan AFSCME Local 698 (technical) and 3700 (clerical) employees at UIUC represent more than 1,500 who have worked without a contract since last August.  Contract talks have dragged nearly a year.  The management bargaining team’s typical responses … Continue reading →

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The End of the European Union?

Posted on 06/28/2012 by Richard Esbenshade

Rick Esbenshade May 9 is officially proclaimed as “Europe Day” by the European Union (EU)—an official, symbolic holiday ignored by most Europeans. This year, any celebration was overshadowed by the May 6 election results in France and Greece, in which … Continue reading →

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Argentina’s Critics Get It Wrong Again

Posted on 05/17/2012 by Mark Weisbrot

Mark Weisbrot This article was published in The Guardian (UK) on April 18, 2012 (www.guardian.co.uk./commentsfree/cifamerica/2012/april/18/argentina-critics-0il-nationalize)   The Argentine government’s decision to re-nationalize its formerly state-owned oil and gas company, YPF, has been greeted with howls of outrage, threats, forecasts of rage … Continue reading →

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The Union-Cooperative Model: A Key to Economic Democracy

Posted on 05/09/2012 by Belden Fields

By Belden Fields  Worker cooperatives can take a variety of forms. Each one tends to have unique aspects; however there are some overarching types that we can identify. There are retail consumer coops, service coops, and producer coops.   In … Continue reading →

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BOT Speech

Posted on 04/24/2012 by Jimmi Jay

First of all, I would like to thank the Board for granting me the opportunity to address them. I am here to discuss an issue at the local Flex-N-Gate auto-parts plant that is actively harming our entire community and threatening … Continue reading →

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The International Year of Cooperatives: The Change We Have Been Waiting For

Posted on 04/07/2012 by Keith Taylor

It would seem that when a systemic crisis arises, the problem is identified as either the market (the Banks!) or the state (entitlement programs!). Yet, in a perversely twisted line of logic, the corrective solution for such crises is either … Continue reading →

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Growing Community Through Local Capital

Posted on 04/07/2012 by Jacqueline Hannah

Jacqueline Hannah Jacqueline Hannah is a 15 year resident of C-U and the general manager of Common Ground Food Co-op in Urbana. She’s passionate about growing the cooperative movement and being a part of the health and vitality of her … Continue reading →

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FLEX N GATE WORKERS FIGHT FOR HEALTH, LIVING WAGES AND JUSTICE IN URBANA ILLINOIS

Posted on 04/05/2012 by David Johnson

CENTRAL ILLINOIS JOBS WITH JUSTICE FLEX N GATE WORKERS FIGHT FOR HEALTH, LIVING WAGES AND JUSTICE IN URBANA ILLINOIS WHY A BILLIONAIRE CANT AFFORD SAFETY EQUIPMENT OR LIVING WAGES ? Billionaire Shahid Kahn, owner of Flex N Gate Incorporated, manafactures bumpers for the … Continue reading →

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International Capitalism Writ Large in Our Community

Posted on 03/05/2012 by Jimmi Jay

By Jimmi Jay Flex-N-Gate is a multi-national corporation that manufactures auto parts ranging from bumpers and hinges to pedal systems and instrument panels for major automakers including BMW, Ford, Nissan, and Toyota. In 2011, Flex-N-Gate reported $2.5 billion in annual … Continue reading →

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Winning the Bread

Posted on 03/04/2012 by admin

By Nancy Dietrich Dietrich works for the University of Illinois and lives in Urbana. This piece (which has been slightly modified) was originally published as a Guest Commentary in the Champaign-Urbana News-Gazette. Awhile back, a male friend disclosed to me … Continue reading →

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“Shut Down the Mills!”: Women, the Modern Strike, and Revolution

Posted on 03/03/2012 by Belden Fields

By Berenice Carroll Women’s nonviolent direct action has a more extensive history and has been more influential in the history of political action for social change than is generally recognized. One of the most important contributions of women to the … Continue reading →

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Crisis for U of I President Hogan

Posted on 02/15/2012 by anonymous

U of I President Michael Hogan had little reason to enjoy his winter vacation. Not even his $600,000 plus salary could buy him a break.  Sometime around mid-semester, Hogan probably thought he was on a roll. His Enrollment Management Plan … Continue reading →

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The US Today: Economic Stagnation, Political Paralysis

Posted on 11/10/2011 by Mark Weisbrot

Mark Weisbrot   First published in the Guardian guardian.co.uk, Friday 7 October 2011   Given mass unemployment and stimulus spending blocked in Washington, no wonder people are taking to the streets The monthly employment report for September, released Friday, shows … Continue reading →

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