Michigan House bill could reduce state oversight of youth employment

This would allow a student under age 16 to continue working despite poor academic standing like chronic absenteeism or tardiness, or disciplinary issues. 

The proposal amounts to a loosening of child labor restrictions, Kuhnen said, arguing that would place the state’s children at risk...

 https://www.michiganpublic.org/politics-government/2026-06-13/michigan-house-bill-could-reduce-state-oversight-of-youth-employment

 

Stopping A.I. From Destroying America with Congresswoman Sara Jacobs (Find Out podcast on YouTube)

A.I. already plays a role in so many aspects of our lives and lately, the negatives of A.I. have far outweighed the positives. Just ask a recent college graduate who's applied to hundreds of jobs and hasn't received a single response. While more companies have been using A.I. to scan resumes, the big issue is we don't know if these A.I. systems are breaking fair employment laws or showing any bias when fielding candidates. 

On this episode of the Find Out Podcast, Congresswoman Sara Jacobs (D-CA), returns to talk about how her A.I. regulation bill, which has bipartisan support in Congress, would give the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission additional tools to prevent A.I. systems from breaking the law. 

Our conversation with Congresswoman Jacobs doesn't just touch upon on A.I. guardrails. It's Congress's inability to fully understand the impact A.I. is having on the American electorate and how to keep up with and respond to this technology as it changes rapidly. 

While states like California have done a better job at regulating A.I., President Donald Trump has also been doing the bidding of the A.I. industry to override states' ability to take action. We also have a misguided fixation on trying to out-China China in the A.I. arms race. 

Congresswoman Jacobs argues that when Democrats retake the House in 2026 midterms, they will have a significant opportunity to future proof the government and push through A.I. protections that have a real impact.

We also take the time to discuss FISA reforms and enjoy seeing clowns like Nancy Mace and Spencer Pratt lose their primaries.

00:00 Welcome to the Find Out Podcast!
01:20 Regulating AI: Rep. Sarah Jacobs on the Sectoral AI Governance Act
08:39 State Protections vs. The Global AI Race
31:29 Reforming FISA & Stopping Government Surveillance
40:31 Culture Wars: Nancy Mace & Bathroom Politics
45:33 Trump's Wild Press Conference & Political Predictions
56:12 Beating the Billionaires: Join Find Out Social
57:42 Subscribe!

Interview: 

https://youtu.be/26nkZ9eT1gg?si=zBzVK8BYgX68251D

The economic chilling effect of Trump’s immigration crackdown : Planet Money : NPR

" The mass deportations in Trump 2.0 are not helping the labor market overall and not creating more job opportunities for U.S.-born workers," East says. In fact, she and her co-author find evidence that, if anything, the clampdown has hurt the employment prospects of U.S.-born workers, particularly working-class men who work in industries that are heavily reliant on undocumented workers, like construction...

 https://www.npr.org/sections/planet-money/2026/05/12/g-s1-121493/the-economic-chilling-effect-of-trumps-immigration-crackdown

Jobless rate rises, adding to Trump's economic messaging woes - POLITICO

A further deterioration of the labor market would deepen the challenges Trump faces with voters who are increasingly dissatisfied with his economic stewardship...

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/12/16/jobs-report-trump-employment-economy-00692500 

 

Rural Americans who rely on Head Start worry about its future: ‘Without free childcare I couldn’t work’

Many voters who voted Trump into the White House fear that the free childcare program could face a slow death…

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/sep/28/rural-americans-head-start-childcare

 

Elizabeth Warren introduces bill to ban employers from running credit reports in hiring

"Nobody should be discriminated against and miss out on a job opportunity because of their financial history," Warren said in a statement to the Guardian. "While the Trump administration tanks the labor market, our bill prohibits employers from using credit scores in their hiring process so that everyone can have a fair chance."…

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/sep/15/elizabeth-warren-credit-reports-employment

 

Donald Trump OFF THE RAILS In Moronic, Racist Rant

Jon Favreau and Tommy Vietor discuss Trump's completely unhinged phone interview with CNBC.

Interview: 

https://youtu.be/azH3Kx6HDoI?si=XTsk1dpEaHu0vOQ1

When your manager calls you on your days off #animation #funnyvideo #gpl...

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/u7grbYwGPNI

Trump vs. Biden: Let's Compare the Facts

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0E7c1J2DMPs

Tuberville plies bogus numbers on Biden jobs versus Trump unemployment

In Biden's first year in the White House, the unemployment rate rapidly improved, falling from 6.4% in January to 3.9% in December. In 2022, the average for the year improved to 3.6%. A year later, it remained at 3.6%. 

In fact, in April 2023, the jobless rate fell all the way to 3.4% — a level unseen in the United States since before the Moon landing. What's more, the unemployment rate has now been below 4% for 27 consecutive months — a streak also unseen since the 1960s.

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/tuberville-picks-fight-unemployment-gop-cant-win-rcna153884

Biases against Black-sounding first names can lead to discrimination in hiring, especially when employers make decisions in a hurry − new research

We found that the names of workers perceived as Black, such as Shanice or Terell, were more likely to elicit negative presumptions, such as being less educated, productive, trustworthy and reliable, than people with either white-sounding names, such as Melanie or Adam, or racially ambiguous names, such as Krystal or Jackson…

https://theconversation.com/biases-against-black-sounding-first-names-can-lead-to-discrimination-in-hiring-especially-when-employers-make-decisions-in-a-hurry-new-research-208423

The Welfare to Temp Work Pipeline -- Chapter 6 (Uncertain Hour podcast)

Since the 1990s, most cash welfare recipients have been required to get a job or do mandated “work activities” to receive their monthly check. These requirements are intended to help parents who are struggling financially into jobs that will help keep them out of poverty and off government benefits. But is the work requirement system meeting either of those goals?

According to our analysis of data from Wisconsin, an average of nearly 70% of employed welfare participants worked at temp companies. These companies put people to work in other companies, trying to fill temporary jobs where the work is often grueling and the pay low. 

Welfare-to-work has been so good for temp agencies that some of them actively lobby for more work requirements for government benefits through campaign contributions and white papers. “It gives us a pool of more people we can help,” said the CEO of one temp company whose franchises have ranked among the top 10 employers of Wisconsin welfare participants. “A person loses self-esteem when they don’t go back to work. Whether it’s voluntary or involuntary work is very important for their psyche.”

On this episode, host Krissy Clark looks at the cozy relationship between for-profit welfare companies and temp companies desperate to put people to work in some of the country’s most precarious jobs. Plus, a frank discussion with an architect of our modern welfare-to-work system, former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson. For a deeper dive into the numbers about how private welfare contractors make money and some other eye-popping data, check out the work of our colleagues at APM Research Lab.
Interview: 

https://www.marketplace.org/shows/the-uncertain-hour/

Bidenomics is Working

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPR0BrvDotM

Is Tim Scott right that a record-low share of working-age men are working today? - PolitiFact

Scott has a point that men's participation in the workforce has been declining for decades. However, for the specific group of men he singled out — working-age men, defined by federal statistics as ages 25 to 54 — labor force participation has been rising since the worst of the pandemic in 2020 and is now near 2019 levels...

https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2023/may/24/tim-scott/is-tim-scott-right-that-a-record-low-share-of-work/

GOP's proposed expansion of SNAP work requirements targets many low-income people in their early 50s – but many of them already work

It's reasonable to expect that the new work requirements would force many people to make hard choices between the caregiving arrangements for their loved ones and keeping their benefits. Also, since people who have poor health may not be able to work, they may find themselves unable to put food on the table if they lose SNAP benefits… 

Additional research has found that work requirements tied to aid programs don't get more low-income people to enter the labor force. Studies also have found that these policies cause many people who are eligible for assistance to lose their benefits due to paperwork hassles and unclear guidelines…https://theconversation.com/gops-proposed-expansion-of-snap-work-requirements-targets-many-low-income-people-in-their-early-50s-but-many-of-them-already-work-205960

‘Why would we employ people?’ Experts on five ways AI will change work

From farming and education to healthcare and the military, artificial intelligence is poised to make sweeping changes to the workplace. But can it have a positive impact – or are we in for a darker future?

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2023/may/12/why-would-we-employ-people-experts-on-five-ways-ai-will-change-work

These bachelor’s degrees from public colleges pay more than $100,000 (CNBC)

A study based on data from the U.S. Department of Education looks at the bachelor’s degrees from public universities that pay an annual salary of at least $100,000 three years after completion and have a 100% employment rate.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/06/01/these-bachelors-degrees-from-public-colleges-pay-more-than-100000.html

 

Caring for aging parents, sick spouses is keeping millions out of work - The Washington Post

"She can't do anything unassisted, not even eat," said Day, who receives about $280 a day from Medicaid to care for her mother. "… Until my mother leaves this Earth, I will be out of the workforce."…

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2022/04/04/caregiving-economy-adults-work/

Underpaid and misled: how staffing agencies manipulate temps

Report shows temp workers have few protections, even as staffing industry sees explosive growth

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/feb/03/temp-workers-underpaid-manipulated-report

The effect of doubling the minimum wage on employment and earnings in Mexico - ScienceDirect

"… we find no significant effect on employment and a positive and significant impact on earnings, especially at the bottom of the wage distribution."
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0165176521004018