Business

Protesters in San Francisco block a Google bus, which shuttles employees from the city to its location in Silicon Valley.

Economy

In A Divided San Francisco, Private Tech Buses Drive Tension

12:31am December 18, 2013

by Casey Miner

Some of the most heated protests in San Francisco have been over big, sleek buses — private shuttles that Silicon Valley tech companies like Google and Facebook use to get their city-living employees to work. They've become a symbol of the city's changing socioeconomic landscape.

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An auto worker tightens bolts on a Focus at a Ford plant in Michigan in October. Labor unions predicted in 1993 that NAFTA would send many U.S. manufacturing jobs to Mexico, and they continue to argue that the pact prompted a race to the bottom for worker

What Has NAFTA Meant For Workers? That Debate's Still Raging

12:31am December 18, 2013

by Don Gonyea

Two decades ago, labor unions warned that the North American Free Trade Agreement would drive away U.S. jobs and push wages down. Today, unions feel as strongly as ever that NAFTA was a mistake for U.S. workers, but quantifying the factors behind the decline in the middle class is no simple matter.

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On Tuesday, Federal Reserve policymakers begin a two-day meeting where many analysts expect they will announce a reduction in the central bank's $85 billion monthly stimulus.

Year In Numbers: The Federal Reserve's $85 Billion Question

12:30am December 18, 2013

by John Ydstie

As 2013 wraps up, NPR is looking at the numbers that tell this year's story. When it comes to the economy, $85 billion is a good candidate. That's the amount the Federal Reserve has been pumping into the financial system each month trying to stimulate growth and bring down unemployment. On Tuesday, Fed policymakers begin a two-day meeting at which they'll decide whether to dial back that stimulus.

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Attendees of a job fair in California in October fill out paperwork.

Economists, Unemployed Fret Over Long-Term Jobless Aid Lapse

12:30am December 18, 2013

by Yuki Noguchi

Democrats in Congress are promising to try to retroactively extend emergency unemployment benefits after the new year. The expiration of the benefits may satisfy some fiscal conservatives, but it has some economists and many desperate job-seekers concerned.

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Glaxo To Stop Paying Doctors To Promote Drugs

12:30am December 18, 2013

The head of British drug maker GlaxoSmithKline told The New York Times on Monday that the company will stop paying doctors to promote its drugs. Pharmaceutical firms commonly pay physicians to speak at medical conferences — a practice criticized as a conflict of interest.

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Italian Police Arrest 4 In Holiday Extortion Case

12:30am December 18, 2013

Four alleged mafia gangsters have been arrested for forcing shop owners to buy poinsettias for as much as $140 each. Owners who refused to partake in the "Christmas special" would have their shops vandalized.

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National

FAA To Soon Pick Sites For Commercial Drone Testing

12:30am December 18, 2013

by Will Stone

Before the end of the year, the federal government will select six states where drone makers can test how to safely integrate the technology into commercial airspace. Nevada is vying for one of the spots. The FAA stamp of approval could lure big industry to high-end test sites. But smaller drone developers, who're focused on non-military applications, also see enormous opportunities.

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Some Steinway company representatives and employees — like Wally Boot, pictured here — have been working for the company for decades. Boot is the last person to touch every piano that leaves the factory in Queens, N.Y.

Music & Culture

New Owner Promises Handmade Steinways For Years To Come

12:30am December 18, 2013

by Jeff Lunden

When billionaire John Paulson first bought Steinway & Sons, it struck fear in the hearts of musicians. Would Steinway's famously handcrafted pianos be changed, for the sake of efficiency?

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One of several robots at the University of California, San Francisco's hospital pharmacy helps manage and track its drug inventory.

Economy

Is Silicon Valley Automating Our Obsolescence?

2:58pm December 17, 2013

by Steve Henn

Silicon Valley has created mind-boggling amounts of wealth. Entire industries have been invented here. Billionaires are minted annually, but inequality is rising rapidly and the middle class is thinning out. Could the same technology that's making so many so rich undermine the labor market?

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Co-workers at Denver's Galvanize, a tech hub in Colorado's capital.

How The Sharing Economy Is Changing The Places We Work

2:43pm December 17, 2013

by Elise Hu

The sharing economy is already changing several sectors: housing, transportation, retail. In some cities, it's changing the way we work. As more people start their own enterprises, they're shunning traditional offices and choosing to share space instead.

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