Canadian economists support $15, media round-up
53 Canadian economists, myself among them, have signed an open letter in support of the $15 per hour minimum wage. The letter follows on the immense bottom-up campaign in Ontario…
Michal Rozworski
Economists support $15 minimum wage in Ontario
We, the undersigned economists, support the decision to increase the minimum wage in Ontario to $15 an hour. Raising the wage floor makes good economic sense. Today, Ontario’s minimum wage…
Economic power to the people!
Photo by Jose Luis Magana I want to inaugurate this new column by harkening back to something old. I recently came across a pamphlet first published in 1943 by the…
Jeremy Corbyn is Prime Minister
Looking to the UK, it definitely feels like a series of those weeks where decades happen. Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour narrowly lost but really won the election, its vote share up…
The $15 minimum wage is good: busting business lobby myths
With the Ontario government seriously considering raising the minimum wage thanks to the tireless organizing efforts of the $15 and Fairness campaign, the labour movement and thousands of supporters, the…
Neoliberalism restructures work and pensions
On today’s show, two sociologists talk about aspects of neoliberal restructuring. First, Nicole Aschoff, sociologist, author of The New Prophets of Capital and until very recently managing editor of Jacobin…
Four (more) arguments against real-world basic income
With the Ontario Liberals rolling out their basic income pilot project to much fanfare this week, it’s an opportune time to dive into the debates around BI once again. 1…
Budgeting for the oil bust in Saskatchewan and Alberta
The resource price bust is already a few years old but it’s still hitting parts of Canada hard. Two guests talk about the impact of the downturn on fiscal policy…
Women on strike in the US and Poland
For International Women’s Day, two interviews on women’s protests and strikes, in the USA and in Poland. My first guest is Barbara Smith. Barbara is an icon of the US…
Ours to own, not theirs to profit
It seems the public sector is under attack from all directions these days. Despite historically low public financing costs, despite proven efficiency and innovation, the public sector gets a bad…
No, Canada’s economy will not collapse if Trudeau stands up to Trump
Trudeau met Trump on Monday but voiced no criticism. He stayed mum on Trump’s racist travel bans for Muslims and refugees—silent even about Canadian Muslims being arbitrarily denied entry at…
Trudeau’s Growth Council is back with more bad ideas
Justin Trudeau’s friends in finance, consulting and big business dominate the grandly named Advisory Council on Economic Growth. A few months after recommending a giant privatization scheme, the gang is…
Learning from the rise of the right in the global South
With only two days left until Donald Trump’s inauguration, today’s two guests look at the turn to the right that’s already well under way across parts of the global South.…
#RealChange wearing thin: A look back at Trudeau’s first year
We’re one year into Justin Trudeau’s government of #RealChange, yet it’s mostly the rhetoric not the policies that have changed. Some of the shine is finally wearing off. Whether approving…
The road tolls for thee
Last week, Toronto mayor Join Tory announced a plan to toll two major Toronto highways, the Gardiner and the DVP. The city is starved for cash with huge shortfalls for…
No shortcuts: Jane McAlevey on organizing that can transform unions and society
Today’s epsiode was recorded live at an event with union organizer and author Jane McAlevey in Toronto last week to launch her new book, No Shortcuts: Organizing for Power in…
Don’t mourn, organize! Sarah Jaffe on organizing before and after Trump
You could almost hear the whole world hold its breath as the night of November 8th dragged on and Donald Trump’s march towards the presidency became clearer. While it may…
Trudeau’s economic model is clear and it is not good
Last week gave us a good idea of the economic model that Trudeau’s Liberals are gradually putting forward and it is business-friendly to the core. The infrastructure bank privatization scheme…
The great rentier give-away
With today’s fiscal update, the Trudeau government has really shown itself to be at the forefront of global left neoliberalism. Taking nearly all his cues from his business-dominated Advisory Council…
Focus on Latin America: Colombia’s rejected peace and the Pink Tide in trouble
Political Eh-conomy Radio returns with a new logo, new life and a new episode focused on Latin America. First up: Aaron Tauss, assistant professor of International Political Economy at the…