By Emile Schepers, People’s World A massive one‑day general strike paralysed Portugal on November 24, as major labour federations united to denounce austerity measures being imposed by the Socialist Party (social democrat) Prime Minister, Jose Socrates. The unions claim the strike was 80 percent effective. Media reported complete shutdowns in many areas of airlines, public [...]
Category Archives: Economics
Jobless Benefits Not Available for Majority
December 1 10
In a critique of the Harper government’s policies, labour economist Andrew Jackson recently pointed out that “Well under one-half of Canada’s 1.5 million unemployed workers are collecting EI benefits today, even though the unemployment rate is still almost 8%. Special EI measures introduced as part of the 2009 Budget, notably an extra five weeks of [...]
Food Banks Report that Hunger Stalks Canadians
December 1 10
PV Vancouver Bureau Despite the hype in the big business media about the so-called “economic recovery,” hundreds of thousands of Canadians face a hungry holiday season and a long cold winter. That’s the only possible conclusion from the latest HungerCount report on food bank use in Canada, and economic indicators which peg the “official” jobless [...]