Jobless rate is down, wages up, but not all is worth celebrating this Labor Day
WASHNGTON - Arizona's jobless rate is the lowest in decades, job openings are plentiful and salaries are inching up, all good news for workers on this Labor Day. While those gains are offset by nagging inflation, economists say the outlook for workers in Arizona is "relatively rosy,"
White House plan to negotiate drug prices could affect 165,000 Arizonans
WASHINGTON - The Biden administration targeted 10 prescription drugs Tuesday as part of the first-ever Medicare price negotiation, a move that it said could benefit 9 million beneficiaries - including 165,000 in Arizona.
Arizona fares slightly better as high mortgages, low inventory hit home sales
WASHINGTON - High mortgage rates and tight inventories are hitting home sales nationwide, but agents in Arizona say the continuing influx of new residents to the state has softened the impact in the Valley.
Student loan repayments will hit economy; how hard depends on who’s being hit
WASHINGTON - When federal student loan payments resume Oct. 1, they could pull $71 billion a year out of the economy, $5.3 billion from Arizona. The pain could be real for borrowers - about 880,000 in Arizona - but will present only a "modest headwind" to the overall economy.
Haitian workers endure harsh living, working conditions in company settlement
Undocumented or stateless, after the Dominican Republic stripped their citizenship status, Haitian workers and those of Haitian descent find it difficult to leave harsh living and working conditions at Central Romana's sugar cane fields.
Haitian sugar cane workers in the Dominican Republic suffer amid U.S. embargo on Central Romana
LA ROMANA, Dominican Republic - Haitian and stateless sugar cane workers in the Dominican Republic continue to suffer worsening conditions of forced labor that has led to a U.S. embargo on sugar produced by Central Romana Corp.
Report: State added 13,000 clean-energy jobs in past year, 7th best in U.S.
WASHINGTON - Arizona added almost 13,000 clean-energy jobs in the past year, good enough for seventh-most among states and evidence that the state is becoming a "powerhouse" for clean energy and electric vehicle production, a new report says.
‘Very personal project’: Repurposed shipping containers provide alternative shelter for those experiencing homelessness
PHOENIX – The city of Phoenix has teamed up with nonprofit St. Vincent de Paul and metal fabrication company Steel + Spark to provide another shelter option using shipping containers.
Tucson says $50 million grant will kick off ‘transformational’ redevelopment
WASHINGTON - Tucson officials said a $50 million federal grant will allow the city to begin work on long-awaited "transformational" redevelopment of the Oracle Road and Miracle Mile area near downtown.
Coconino official tells House ‘anti-ESG’ bills threaten public investments
WASHINGTON - Coconino County Treasurer Sarah Benatar told House lawmakers Tuesday that it's her job to get the best, and safest, return on public investments for taxpayers, but that "anti-ESG" legislation puts public dollars at risk.
Latest student debt-relief plan could mean $1 billion for 20,000 in Arizona
WASHINGTON – More than 20,000 Arizona residents would see $1 billion in student debt erased under a Biden administration plan unveiled just two weeks after the Supreme Court struck down a previous debt-forgiveness plan.
Inflation hits Valley animal shelters; adoptions decline amidst soaring costs
PHOENIX – With inflation rising in Maricopa County, animal shelters are feeling the impact through a drop in adoptions and an increase in animal surrenders.
