Economy Up, People Down

It’s a strange phenomenon. Corporate profits are soaring while the average worker is putting in more and more hours and earning less and less. Productivity has increased while wages have been stagnant or declining for the last twenty years. The percentage of corporate income devoted to payrolls is hovering near a record low. CEO salaries have skyrocketed. The gap between rich and poor has dramatically widened. Many of the new jobs are temporary. Rent-a-workers at McJobs have become common. Temps, euphemistically called “contingency workers,” are a boon to business because they don’t receive any benefits. This program includes a brilliant analysis of the Mexican peso crisis and bailout.

Recorded at the Brecht Forum.