unemployment

Remember when corporate America supported minimum wage hikes?

Critics of Obama's minimum wage hike say it will make it harder for employers to hire. Not too long ago, some of the biggest employers actually supported higher wages.

FORTUNE – In Tuesday's State of the Union address, President Obama promised (again) to raise the federal minimum wage to $9 from $7.25, which would boost pay for the nation's cashiers, janitors, and other low-wage workers.

Judging by failed efforts in the past, MORE

State of the Union: Plenty of plans, not much economic promise

The president didn't offer much comfort to the manager and owners of American businesses who complain that high tax rates, strangling regulation, and health care reform are thwarting investment in American jobs.

This year's biggest economic losers

Who's going to feel the biggest squeeze? Though they get plenty of attention, it's not the wealthy or the middle class.

Lucky 2013: A case for economic good times

It's easy to predict gloom and doom for the U.S. economy. But strong growth and job recovery are no pie-in-the-sky fantasies.

By Geoff Colvin, senior editor-at-large

FORTUNE -- In your sleep you can name 10 reasons 2013 will be lousy for business and the economy. So can I. But analyzing only the downside is a bad habit; missing a boom is at least as dangerous as missing a bust. So let's MORE

3 bright spots in the U.S. job market for 2013

Unemployment is slowly falling, and job creation is creeping up.

FORTUNE -- For the past five years, joblessness has perhaps been the biggest thorn on the U.S. economy. The unemployment rate peaked at 10% in late 2009. Since then, it has only fallen to 7.7% as of November, suggesting the long slog is likely to continue into the New Year.

For 2013, economists widely agree the outlook for jobs will continue improving but MORE

America's new work ethic?

New welfare rules and booming disability insurance rolls reveal a bias toward aid checks over paychecks. By Nina Easton

The silent job killer: Our unemployment system

The unemployment benefits system was built on a combination of wishful thinking, generosity, and skimpy funding during good times. Today, it's likely impeding job growth.

By Nina Easton, senior editor-at-large

FORTUNE -- Hemingway Apparel, located in a rural former cotton town a hundred miles east of South Carolina's capitol, should be the kind of small business that government nurtures. In a county where the unemployment rate hovers near 12%, the factory MORE

Why American workers are worse off today

Despite promising signs earlier this year, America's jobless picture today is actually worse than many us thought. By Nin-Hai Tseng

Pre-recession unemployment rate is out of reach

A new report authored by a Federal Reserve president says unemployment cannot fall to pre-recession levels without an inflationary impact. So get used to high unemployment.

FORTUNE – U.S. jobs growth may have picked up earlier this year, offering the millions of unemployed hope that better days are ahead. But once again, the government's monthly unemployment report comes with disappointing news.

In April, the nation's employers created 115,000 positions, after adding 154,000 MORE

Will the rent be too damn high for Bernanke?

Rents are soaring, and that's bad news for inflation -- and for Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke's plans to keep it low. 

FORTUNE – Most of us don't want to pay higher prices, but there's a growing debate over whether we should allow inflation to edge a little higher to help the U.S. economy grow.

Earlier this week, Nobel Prize-winning economist Robert Engle joined fellow prize winner Paul Krugman in building the MORE