Aug 31, 2020

Cash back on streaming and wine?

A customer signs a credit card receipt at an ice cream parlor. Card balances dropped by $76 billion in the second quarter. Chris Graythen/Getty Images

Credit card companies are trying to incentivize spending during the pandemic. Plus: Americans are producing a lot more residential trash and how New York subway cuts could hurt essential workers.

Segments From this episode

COVID-19

Does Trump's payroll tax deferral mean save now, pay later?

by Kimberly Adams

Aug 31, 2020

While the federal government will take the temporary payroll tax break, some employers will skip it.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin speaks as President Donald Trump looks on during a press conference. The Treasury Department Friday released guidance on the payroll tax deferral.

Drew Angerer/Getty Images

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Credit card companies need people to spend

by Justin Ho

Aug 31, 2020

Many credit card companies are launching new cards to capitalize on shifting consumer spending.

A customer signs a credit card receipt at an ice cream parlor. Card balances dropped by $76 billion in the second quarter.

Chris Graythen/Getty Images

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COVID-19

As offices stay dark, what's happening to lunch spots?

by Marielle Segarra

Aug 31, 2020

“New York is being emptied out. And you can feel it at the store level.”

A worker walks past an outdoor dining area in New York on Aug. 10.

Spencer Platt/Getty Images

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More working from home means we're generating more residential trash

by Erika Beras

Aug 31, 2020

Meanwhile, closed offices, stores and stadiums have been producing a lot less commercial garbage.

Workers sort recycled materials at a Maryland facility. Compared to pre-pandemic times, more refuse is being generated by homes and less by businesses.

Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

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COVID-19

Proposed cuts to New York City subway could make life worse for many

by Kristin Schwab

Aug 31, 2020

Service reductions would hurt essential workers most. The system is seeking a federal funding bailout.

In Manhattan, the subway serves fewer riders than before the pandemic, and the transit authority is suffering financially.

Spencer Platt/Getty Images

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Southeastern produce growers say they need trade relief

by Emma Hurt

Aug 31, 2020

The USMCA trade agreement has not relieved their concerns about Mexican imports. The situation is dire, a Georgia blueberry farmer says.

Joe Cornelius, left, and Russ Goodman, south Georgia blueberry farmers, at Goodman’s blueberry farm in Cogdell, Georgia. Cornelius says in five years, the blueberry industry in Georgia might be done.

Emma Hurt

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Adventures in Housing

How one full-time RV-er found community on the road

by Maria Hollenhorst

Aug 31, 2020

Selling her house and moving into an Airstream trailer helped Mary D’Rozario create a new life.

In 2017, Mary D'Rozario sold her home and moved into this Airstream trailer. "At the RV park, people are used to forming connections with someone they just met,” she says.

(Courtesy of Mary D'Rozario)

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Music from the episode

Pink + White Frank Ocean

Blue Clouds Modeselektor

To Zion (feat. Carlos Santana) Ms. Lauryn Hill, Carlos Santana

Ungodly Fruit Wax Tailor

Edge of Town Middle Kids

The team

Nancy Farghalli Executive Producer

Daisy Palacios Senior Producer

Maria Hollenhorst Producer

Sean McHenry Associate Producer

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