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Some upbeat economic news for millennials

New research casts doubt on the widespread belief that the generation of Americans will be worse off than their parents.
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

Rising unemployment doesn't hit all parts of the labor force equally

Sep 14, 2023
Even a small increase in unemployment can result in disproportionate effects on marginalized groups.
As the unemployment rises, it'll be important to keep an eye on how much more it rises for vulnerable groups, says Betsey Stevenson of the University of Michigan.
Alex Edelman/AFP via Getty Images

The Enron scandal: 20 years later, what’s changed?

Sep 23, 2021
Very little, according to Bethany McLean, the first financial reporter to ask questions about Enron's accounting practices.
Former Enron CEO and Chairman Kenneth Lay is sworn in before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation in 2002.
Stephen Jaffe/AFP/Getty Images

One key to fixing the economy? Getting low-wage workers help

Christopher Low, chief economist at FHN Financial, says low-wage workers are suffering the bulk of job losses — the opposite of what happened in 2008.
A pedestrian walks by a San Francisco restaurant closed because of COVID-19.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Just how bad is this economic crisis going to get?

Aug 20, 2020
We asked a group of experts in economic history.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Recessions are bad for labor movements ... except when they're not

Jul 31, 2020
What the history of union movements can teach us about worker power during the pandemic.
Women strikers on a New York City picket line during the Uprising of the 20,000, a garment workers strike of 1909 and 1910.
Bain News Service

Who gets to decide if we are in a recession?

Jun 9, 2020
We have to take the word of economists at the National Bureau of Economic Research, who have been making that call for a hundred years.
A man wears a face mask as he check his phone in Times Square on March 22, 2020 in New York City. - Coronavirus deaths soared across the United States and Europe on despite heightened restrictions as hospitals scrambled to find ventilators. (Photo by Kena Betancur / AFP) (Photo by KENA BETANCUR/AFP via Getty Images)
Kena Betancur/AFP via Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

Americans won't be racing out to spend money as lockdown restrictions ease, early indicators suggest.
Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

Some companies are cutting retirement contributions in the COVID-19 cash crunch

Apr 1, 2020
During the Great Recession, about 20% of companies scaled back matching funds.
You probably don't want to check your 401(k) just now, or you might look like this trader did on March 9.
Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images

More and more people are being laid off. How far might unemployment go?

Mar 18, 2020
As unemployment climbs, it gets harder for the economy to come back.
Scott Barbour/Getty Images