American Workers Archives - The Michigan Star

U.S. Steelmakers Back Trump’s Tariff Plans amid Steep Foreign Competition

December 2, 2024 Daily Caller News Foundation

Some U.S. steelmakers are supporting President-elect Donald Trump’s proposals to place tariffs on China, Mexico and other countries, according to The Wall Street Journal.

American steel companies are calling for Trump to reintroduce tariffs on steel from the U.K., Japan and the EU amid concerns of foreign competitors being involved in unfair market practices, according to The WSJ. Some U.S. steel executives were supportive of steel tariffs under the previous Trump administration, with some steelmakers saying the tariffs helped to boost profits, The WSJ reported.

Over 800,000 Fewer Native-Born Americans Are Employed than Last Year

October 5, 2024 Daily Caller News Foundation

More than 800,000 fewer native-born Americans are employed than last year as job gains among Americans continue to lag behind those of foreign-born workers, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

The number of foreign-born workers employed increased by approximately 1.2 million year-over-year in September, while 825,000 fewer native workers were employed, BLS data shows. The large annual difference is in spite of the roughly 920,000 upward employment fluctuation for native-born workers in September compared to August, after a 1,325,000 drop from July to August.

Commentary: Foreign-Born Workers are Taking Americans’ Jobs

June 19, 2024 Michigan Star Staff

Something very strange is going on in America’s labor market. The employer’s survey in the June jobs report showed 272,000 jobs gained in May, and nearly 2.8 million jobs over the past year. These are both amazing figures given that the economy is at full employment.

While the employer’s survey is surely fine, the household survey, also produced by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), tells a strikingly different story, almost as though the country had two different labor markets.

Illegal Immigration ‘Surge’ Will Put ‘Downward Pressure’ on Wages for Years, CBO Says

February 9, 2024February 8, 2024 Michigan Star Staff

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects that the ongoing surge in immigration, both legal and illegal, will put “downward pressure” on inflation-adjusted wages through 2034, according to a recently released report.

The downward effect on real wages will continue until 2027, at which point it will “partially reverse,” with immigration still expected to cause average real wages to be lower in 2034 than they otherwise would be, according to CBO. CBO did predict some positive impacts of immigration, as well, such as increased GDP growth and an expanded labor force.

Commentary: Reforming Private Sector Unions

December 7, 2023 Michigan Star Staff

Unlike public sector unions, which are inherently corrupt and need to be outlawed, private sector unions have a vital role to play in American society. But these unions have become coopted by the same special interests they were originally formed to oppose. The political agenda of America’s unions is almost exclusively leftist, and being part of America’s institutional “Left” is not what it used to be.

The biggest misconception in American politics today is that the political Left is fighting corporate power. Leftists may still attack corporate profits and demand corporations pay their “fair share,” but on every major issue affecting the economic freedom and prosperity of working families in America, these presumed antagonists are actually in perfect alignment.

Commentary: The New Right Cares About More than Taxes

October 1, 2023 Michigan Star Staff

New research is challenging assumptions about the Republican Party’s core values, showing the GOP of the 2020s is an entirely different animal from the GOP of the 2010s. The research captures an increasing shift toward populism and America First priorities that has been growing since Former President Trump’s election in 2016.

The study by American Compass divides Republicans into two camps, the Old Right and the New Right, based on their economic priorities and approach to cultural issues.

Commentary: New Jobs Report Proves That Bidenomics Is Failing American Workers

September 2, 2023September 1, 2023 Michigan Star Staff

There’s no question about it now: The labor market is weakening. Friday’s jobs report showed 187,000 new jobs were created in August, well below the 12-month average, and the unemployment rate jumped. August marks the third consecutive month with fewer than 200,000 jobs created. June and July job creation was massively revised down by 110,000 in what’s becoming a common trend. And real wages grew slower than core inflation, continuing the nation’s decline in living standards.

Average American Workers Now Demand $80K Salary to Start New Jobs

August 30, 2023 Michigan Star Staff

On Monday, the Federal Reserve published research suggesting that the preferred starting wage for the average American worker is at an all-time high.

According to Fox Business, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York determined that the average “reservation wage” – that is, the lowest salary at which a prospective employee will accept a job – reached $78,645 in the second quarter of 2023. This is an 8% increase from the second quarter of 2022, when the average reservation wage was approximately $72,873.

Commentary: Red China’s Electric Vehicle Invasion of America

August 10, 2023August 9, 2023 Michigan Star Staff

Chinese Communist Party (CCP) electric vehicles (EVs) manufactured in Red China are now for sale in the U.S. They are Buick’s Envision and Sweden’s Polestar 2, with Lincoln Nautilus soon to follow. Many more Red Chinese EV brands are coming. Waiting in the wings to begin export to the U.S. are BYD Co., Li Auto, Xpeng Motors, Nio Inc., and Geely.

And, as the U.S. dismantles its combustion engine industry and all the ancillary industries to make way for EVs that Americans aren’t buying, American workers are losing jobs and suffering wage decreases. People working in repair shops, garages, gas stations, parts manufacturers, and distributors are just a few of those who will suffer.

Biden ‘Inflation Tax’ Erases Gains in Workers’ Pay, as Democrats’ Own Economists Admit Fears

August 13, 2021August 12, 2021 Michigan Star Staff

One promise from the U.S. economy emerging from the pandemic was that American workers would benefit from a tight labor pool driving up salary and pay. And while that happened, the benefits have all been erased by the sudden surge of inflation on President Biden’s watch.

That means workers aren’t running in place, they are actually falling behind as rising prices force middle- and working-class families to make hard choices, like whether to fill the gas tank or the refrigerator.

Inflation topped out at 5.4% in July, the government reported Wednesday, the third straight month above 5%. When President Trump left office in January, inflation was in check at just 1.4%.

Just 14 States Had Positive Job Growth in May

June 26, 2021June 25, 2021 Michigan Star Staff

Just 14 states saw positive employment growth between April and May while the majority of the growth was concentrated in a handful of states, according to the Department of Labor.

Fourteen states led by California, Florida and Texas experienced significant job growth, 35 states experienced stagnant job growth and Wyoming saw a decline in employment last month, according to a Department of Labor report released Wednesday. Overall, the unemployment rates in 21 states decreased between April and May while every state’s employment improved compared to May 2020.

While the U.S. continues to report increased job growth, the report showed that the vast majority of the growth has come from about a dozen states.

Commentary: Biden’s Union Agenda Betrays American Workers

May 17, 2021 Michigan Star Staff

Man in safety vest, working during the day.

The consequences of Democratic control of Congress and the White House are just beginning to be felt, as one of the most disruptive pieces of legislation in American history quietly moves from the House of Representatives to the Senate, where only a successful filibuster may prevent its passage. H.R. 842, also known as the Protect the Right to Organize Act (PRO Act) goes a long way towards completing America’s transition into a corporate oligarchy. Because it will also make the elite captains of big labor more powerful than ever, they don’t care.

The PRO Act, like the more visible H.R. 1, is an example of disastrous legislation that is packaged and labeled as advancing the interests of the American worker, when in fact they are designed by special interests to destroy democracy and deny upward mobility. The new operative theme is simple and tragic: in America, big labor, big business, and big government no longer engage in healthy conflict. Rather than checking and balancing each other, on the biggest issues they display a corrupt unity.

Here are some of the provisions of the PRO Act:

Commentary: Bernie Sanders Proves He’s Nothing More Than an Establishment Mouthpiece

May 15, 2021May 14, 2021 Michigan Star Staff

Remember Bernie Sanders? You know, the goofy socialist who nearly became the Democratic nominee in 2016 and 2020. In both presidential races, his supporters touted him as a threat to the system. His campaign was a “revolution” and, if he became president, he was going to bring down the warmongering, plutocratic establishment.

Bernie has since proved these claims very wrong.

Last week, he tweeted in support of Liz Cheney, the very embodiment of the warmongering plutocratic establishment.

Commentary: H-1B Visa Change is Good News for American Workers

October 12, 2020October 11, 2020 Michigan Star Staff

Though his administration has been marked by setbacks and subversion, President Trump is looking to add a policy notch to his belt and, more importantly, a win for beleaguered American workers.

On October 6, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced reforms of the H-1B nonimmigrant visa program. The H-1B allows foreign nationals to enter the country to work in “specialty occupations”—but that term, like the program itself, is riddled with problems. These visa workers are commonly used to replace Americans, doing the same job for less pay and often without the same level of skill. Americans are often compelled to train their foreign replacements.

Commentary: Let Our People Work

April 10, 2020April 9, 2020 Michigan Star Staff

We are cowering from fear of COVID-19, but quarantine is not a cure to end the virus.

Commentary: ‘All You Americans Are Fired’

November 7, 2019November 6, 2019 Michigan Star Staff

Exactly 33 years ago, President Reagan signed the Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA). Congress had wrangled for six years before finally agreeing to an amnesty for nearly 3 million illegal aliens in exchange for the first-ever ban on the employment of illegal aliens in the future.