Business

National

Chicago officials are joining the effort to crack down on cases of COVID aid fraud

5:43pm August 31, 2023

by Martin Kaste

COVID aid fraud was rampant countrywide, but thousands of Chicago residents appear to have taken money for bogus businesses. Officials say they may have to concentrate on only the worst cases.

Striking hotel workers rally outside the InterContinental Los Angeles Downtown Hotel on Tuesday, July 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

Political scientists confront real world politics dealing with hotel workers strike

5:00pm August 31, 2023

by Danielle Kaye

The American Political Science Association, or APSA, is holding its annual meeting in Los Angeles this weekend despite calls from striking hotel workers for conferences to stay away from the city.

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Fact check: Do lower drug prices make it harder for companies to find new treatments?

4:58pm August 31, 2023

by Sydney Lupkin

The pharmaceutical industry has long said that any attempts to control drug prices would mean disaster for their research and development efforts. But the research doesn't back that up.

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National

Political scientists are in the middle of a hot button issue: striking hotel workers

5:12am August 31, 2023

by Danielle Kaye

The largest convention of political scientists, scheduled for this weekend in Los Angeles, poses a real-world political dilemma for academics who are booked into hotels where workers are on strike.

2/3 of Americans approve of unions — slightly down from last year, but still high

7:19pm August 30, 2023

by Andrea Hsu

The latest Gallop poll finds two-thirds of Americans approve of unions. That's down a few percentage points from last year, but continues a trend that stands in sharp contrast to the last six decades.

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A picket line outside of FOX Studios in Los Angeles. Hollywood actors have been on strike since mid-July; writers have been on strike since May.

Health & Safety

Hollywood union health insurance is particularly good. And it's jeopardized by strike

6:12pm August 30, 2023

by Jackie Fortier

Hollywood actors and writers who qualify for their union health plans get a very good deal compared to other Americans. But not working during the strike threatens their eligibility in the system.

National

Newspaper cuts leave communities like Arlington, Texas, without vital local coverage

5:27pm August 30, 2023

by Kailey Broussard

Deep cuts in the newspaper business has left many communities without robust coverage of important local issues. That includes the Texas city of Arlington with a population of 400,000.

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A Biden proposal would raise the threshold under which salaried workers are eligible for overtime pay — but it could face opposition from business groups.

Millions of additional salaried workers could get overtime pay under Biden proposal

3:40pm August 30, 2023

by Scott Horsley

A proposal from the Labor Department would make an estimated 3.6 million salaried workers newly eligible for overtime pay. It covers workers earning less than $55,000 per year.

Economy

What's your MBA GPA? Take our Summer School final exam to find out

2:00pm August 30, 2023

These 10 exam questions stand between you and a Planet Money Summer School diploma with your name on it.

Pay-by-the-month subscriptions are increasingly popular. But research suggests people often keep paying long after they intend to.

Yes, people often forget to cancel their monthly subscriptions — and the costs add up

1:30pm August 30, 2023

by Scott Horsley

From streaming TV to razor blades by mail, Americans are buying more goods and services through pay-by-the-month plans. New research shows they often keep paying long after they want to.

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