Week of June 1st, 2020

Quoth Kai: “I can’t imagine being in the Bureau of Labor Statistics right now.”

More sectors of the economy gained jobs than lost jobs in May, Labor Department data shows.

NYT culture writer Wesley Morris finds profound meaning in song lyrics while processing this American moment.

Chalk it up to parts of the economy reopening.

A teenager protesting police brutality lands in jail, and we try to understand the tricky business of bail.

Businesses that received CARES Act loans had to rehire workers to have those loans forgiven. But what happens next for America’s job market?

Today we’ll talk with experts and analysts about what to make of the May jobs report and what it says about the changing state of the economy.

The S&P 500 was up 2.2% after the government said that U.S. employers added 2.5 million workers to their payrolls last month.

Answers to some common questions about the changes to unemployment benefits.

The U.S. unemployment rate unexpectedly dropped from nearly 15% in April to 13.3% in May. Economic divides by race are apparent in the numbers, though: the rate for Black people ticked slightly higher. And, where are sports leagues on reopening?

Pro basketball is set to return on July 31. Pro baseball is still at an impasse.

Analysts say there’s no question this executive order will be challenged in court.

Black Americans tend to work in the jobs most affected by the coronavirus shutdowns and are less likely to be able to work from home.

The U.S. unemployment rate fell to 13.3% in May, and 2.5 million jobs were added

April figures show communities that rely on manufacturing are also hurt by job losses, but they may see improvement more quickly.

This week, the Labor Department listed the cities that have been hardest hit by layoffs. The president has a new executive order, allowing federal agencies to bypass some environmental laws. What drives theft and vandalism during protests?

AstraZeneca begins production of a potential COVID-19 vaccine. New U.S. trade restrictions on 33 Chinese technology firms go into effect. English pubs turn to takeout services for survival.

Researchers say underlying factors, such as people’s relationships with police and with communities, can contribute to destructive behavior in the midst of unrest.

Some firms have announced plans to set aside a total of $115 million to finance founders of color. But that’s really not that much.

Think of it as a DDOS attack — racist hashtags never had a chance.

Matt Geller, president of the National Food Truck Association, says the coronavirus wrecked lunch service but operators are building their evening business, especially outside city centers.

Today, we’ll take you beyond the PR of it all. Plus: America’s overnight food deserts, who’s paying overdraft fees and COVID-driven state budget cuts.

The fees can drive many out of the banking system entirely, experts say.

Having savings is important in hard times, but the paradox of thrift theory explains how that could be bad for the economy.

Many companies issued statements in support of the anti-racial bias movement. But some employees question internal actions and policies.

Texas is already near the bottom in per capita spending on education, and cuts would only make it worse.

Grocery stores. Bodegas. Pharmacies. Check-cashing spots. All gone.

Communities of color and activists have been practicing mutual aid for a long time. But it has become much more widespread recently.

The proposed cuts amount to at most 8% of the LAPD’s $1.86 billion budget.

Rehiring has been happening, but slowly. Another 1.9 million people filed jobless claims last week. LA will move money out of policing. Congress’ new rules for PPP loans. A look at how housing came to be precarious for many.

One change: Businesses will have more time to spend their loans and still qualify for forgiveness.

Almost 469,000 workers in K-12 public education lost a job in just the month of April.

Rehiring may be offsetting some of the layoffs, but unemployment is still excessively high.

“Going back to normal would be disastrous for Black Americans,” says Andre M. Perry of the Brookings Institution.

Reimagining a new economy post-COVID-19 requires eliminating racial inequities, says Andre M. Perry. And, a new report shows that many people working for public schools are losing their jobs.

President Trump threatened to ban Chinese airlines from landing in the U.S., if Beijing refused to allow U.S. flights to China resume. LVMH’s bid to buy Tiffany & Co is under review. Europe’s central bank plans more stimulus.

Some platforms have taken action against President Trump, saying he is inciting or glorifying violence.

The property damage in recent protests is on a much lower scale than in past protests.

Plus, we look at consumerism post-COVID and the ripple effects of Silicon Valley workers permanently working from homey, all on this week’s Whaddya Wanna Know Wednesday.

Laurie Stewart, CEO of Seattle-based Sound Community Bank, says the bank has made more than 700 loans through the program.

Merchants are reporting a spike in sales of titles like “How To Be an Antiracist.”

There’s a stark gap between Black and white communities in the state, despite its high scores in quality of life ranking.

Plus, why black women entrepreneurs are missing out on startup funding and a conversation with the director of “Do Not Resist.”

They don’t just have a harder time getting initial funding. They also get less of it.

Chinese workers complain that shortened hours or being told to resign are layoffs by another name.

The loans will be bigger than those from the Paycheck Protection Program — and they can’t be forgiven.

After some protests became destructive in several cities across the U.S., small business owners are cleaning and and trying to protect their stores.

Generations of discriminatory housing policy, and lending practices that favored white borrowers, have entrenched segregation and inequality in American cities.

Investment in firearm companies is up, as are background checks. Early numbers for May job losses appear to be down significantly compared to expectations. State budgets are already strained because of COVID-19. Now hurricane season is here.

Some analysts believe anxiety and fear are driving the spike.

Some major health systems say they are sitting on millions of dollars in billing.

Given the country’s high death rate, Sweden and its health officials are rethinking how they have handled the pandemic.

The lawsuit accuses the company of violating users’ privacy during incognito browsing sessions.

Workers already worried about staying safe are now trying to figure out how to get to and from work without violating curfews.

Many states have already used their regular emergency funds battling the virus, and frontline workers may be exhausted.

Essential workers worry about curfews on top of the coronavirus. Google faces a proposed class-action lawsuit over alleged privacy violations. Some health plans are requiring patients to chip in for COVID-19 testing — which was supposed to be free.

As Italy reopens its borders to Europe, what’s the economic cost of COVID-19 quarantine measures? Sweden’s pandemic policy expert says there is “potential for improvement” in the country’s no-lockdown strategy.

Hire or wire: Hire people of color or wire them investments.

Today: The language we use to talk about protesting and where the fight for equity goes from here.

Plus: what brands are and aren’t saying around Black Lives Matter and the disconnect between Wall Street and Main Street right now.

Marketplace host Kai Ryssdal spoke with Dorothy Brown, Emory University, about the racial economic divide.

The firm wants to catch up with the leading-edge chips made by U.S., South Korean and Taiwanese companies.

Money is allocated differently depending on the type of disaster declaration and who is declaring it.

Mostly about the future — and the Fed.

We check in with two people whose employment has been disrupted by the pandemic.

And more job losses are likely on the way.

Without the ability to film scripted series, some networks are planning to air shows that have already aired, either abroad or on cable.

Brands have long embraced the symbols of counterculture. Now, they’re embracing an underlying cause.

The CEOs of companies from big brands on down have been crafting statements condemning racism and police brutality. The CBO’s grim projections for COVID-19 economic recovery. An update on the 2020 U.S. census.

The videoconferencing company is seeing 300 million daily meeting participants on its platform.

You now have until mid-August to respond to the census if you haven’t yet.

The agency projects the COVID-19 pandemic will cost the U.S. almost $8 trillion in lost economic output this decade.

Being authentic in a corporate press release or memo is difficult.

CEO Mark Zuckerberg opted not to moderate a comment from Trump that Twitter flagged for glorifying violence.

But does the training change behaviors? Some researchers say it’s hard to measure effectiveness.

Researchers say police departments aren’t looking at how implicit bias training affects officer behavior. Facebook employees stage a virtual walkout. China gets into the GPS satellite game with implications for phone users everywhere.

We explore the role of leadership in achieving lasting change. Yemen needs billions in a fundraising drive to stop the world’s biggest aid operation from going broke. Argentina faces another sovereign debt deadline.

The Asian giant will soon launch the last location-tracking satellite for a system that has economic, communications and military applications.

Surveillance tech, including facial recognition, is on the job.

America might be on the verge. Stay tuned.

Abigail Wozniak, director of the Opportunity and Inclusive Growth Institute at the Minneapolis Fed, discusses her department’s role and our current economic situation.

While every moment of social upheaval is unique, history suggests long recovery periods for economies wracked by violent uprisings.

Politicians like to use tax incentives, but are they effective?

Plus: Activists call for cuts to police budgets, the U.S.-China trade war has continued during the pandemic and the long recovery communities face after protests.

Customs broker Gretchen Blough discusses how companies adapted to the coronavirus pandemic after navigating the conflict in U.S.-China commerce.

In a lot of cities, policing eats up a big chunk of the general fund.

Target, Amazon and Apple are among the larger companies who have acknowledged the injustice driving protests.

They accused the president of praising Hong Kong protesters, but cracking down harshly on demonstrators in the United States.

Fewer than half of law enforcement officers in the U.S. are participating in the FBI’s use-of-force database. How insurance companies can be a driver of better policing. Chinese officials accuse the Trump administration of hypocrisy when it comes to protests.

Police insurers wants to make sure that the departments they cover minimize risk for liability.

The organization has been fighting against the concept of cash bail.

“You have cities out there borrowing money to pay off judgments because of brutal and corrupt police officers,” said Marc Morial of the National Urban League.

Amid protests across the country over the killing of George Floyd, a call to make payouts to victims of police misconduct much more transparent to the public. And, some company leaders are acknowledging the injustice driving protests.

Hospitals in Brazil struggle to source supplies of personal protective equipment. Mexico’s economy could shrink 9% this year. As protests ripple across America, what’s the economic impact of social upheaval? 

The FBI also says that just over 40% of law enforcement officers are contributing to the National Use-of-Force Data Collection.

Depending on where people got their information about protests around the country this weekend, they may have completely different ideas about what happened.