Las Vegas (AFP) – Anger over rising prices and wages that don’t stretch far enough brought thousands of casino workers onto the streets of Las Vegas in recent months, part of a wave of labor discontent in the United States.
Yet President Joe Biden is gambling that if he keeps explaining how well the economy is doing, voters will reward him in November’s election.
In America’s gaming capital, that seems like a risky bet.
“The economy is horrible. Inflation has hurt everyone,” Jennine Minervini of the Culinary Workers Union told AFP at a protest outside the Golden Nugget casino.
The union, which represents some 60,000 workers in Sin City, reached a last-minute agreement with casinos last week to avert a large-scale walk-out, securing pay raises for their members.
But the discontent felt among bartenders, wait staff and food servers in Las Vegas echoes that found across America where conversation frequently turns to the price of weekly shopping, or the cost of a tank of gas.
That is despite economic figures that look rather good.
Inflation, which hit a 40-year high in 2022, is trending back toward policymakers’ goal of 2 percent, while the economy as a whole is growing at a decent clip, expanding 3.1 percent in 2023.
Unemployment is at near-historic lows.
“This is a good economy,” Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell recently declared.
Strikes rippled through much of the country last year, paralyzing industries that produce everything from the movies to motors with one common refrain: we need a raise.
Only a third of voters approve of Biden’s handling of the economy, according to a new poll released on Monday by NBC News.
“Everything’s up… the cost of living, rent, the insurance on cars, everything,” said Andrew Wentland, a Las Vegas hospitality worker who took on a second job and now logs 16-hour days just to make ends meet.
“I tried to make a lot of adjustments. And it’s hard when you gotta just live like you’re poor. The money just can’t catch up.”
– ‘A little worried’ –
On Friday, as Wentland and Minervini stood on picket lines in downtown Las Vegas demanding better pay, Biden was trumpeting healthy employment figures, noting there are 14.8 million more jobs now than when he came to office.
“America’s economy is the strongest in the world,” he said. “Today we saw more proof.”
It is this awkward juxtaposition that observers say is fueling Biden’s unpopularity.
“I think people are a little worried when they don’t have more money in their pocket,” said Peter Guzman, president of the Nevada Latin Chamber of Commerce, which represents more than 1,500 members in a state whose main economic activity is entertainment.
“When it comes to the elections, that’s how they’re gonna vote. They’re gonna vote on how their wallet is feeling right now.”
For workers on the picket lines, government sometimes just seems to have the wrong priorities.
Why is what happens in Ukraine and in Israel so important, they ask.
“When I filed my taxes, they took it (and) gave all the money to the people at war,” said Wentland.
“That has nothing to do with us. Take care of us before you take care of them.”
Election
America’s lengthy election process is already in full swing.
Nevada voted Tuesday in presidential preference primaries, and the Republican party will hold its own caucus on Thursday, which Donald Trump is expected to sweep.
That will place him even further ahead of his nearest party rival, Nikki Haley, in a process that looks almost certain to result in a November face-off with Biden.
For many Americans, it’s something of a Hobson’s choice — neither man is particularly popular — but if it’s down to the economy, the ex-president has the edge.
“I don’t like Trump… I don’t like his personality, but I recognize that knowing about economics was a great help for the country,” said businesswoman Laura Bolado, who owns an advertising agency in Las Vegas.
OTTAWA – Canada’s unemployment rate held steady at 6.5 per cent last month as hiring remained weak across the economy.
Statistics Canada’s labour force survey on Friday said employment rose by a modest 15,000 jobs in October.
Business, building and support services saw the largest gain in employment.
Meanwhile, finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing experienced the largest decline.
Many economists see weakness in the job market continuing in the short term, before the Bank of Canada’s interest rate cuts spark a rebound in economic growth next year.
Despite ongoing softness in the labour market, however, strong wage growth has raged on in Canada. Average hourly wages in October grew 4.9 per cent from a year ago, reaching $35.76.
Friday’s report also shed some light on the financial health of households.
According to the agency, 28.8 per cent of Canadians aged 15 or older were living in a household that had difficulty meeting financial needs – like food and housing – in the previous four weeks.
That was down from 33.1 per cent in October 2023 and 35.5 per cent in October 2022, but still above the 20.4 per cent figure recorded in October 2020.
People living in a rented home were more likely to report difficulty meeting financial needs, with nearly four in 10 reporting that was the case.
That compares with just under a quarter of those living in an owned home by a household member.
Immigrants were also more likely to report facing financial strain last month, with about four out of 10 immigrants who landed in the last year doing so.
That compares with about three in 10 more established immigrants and one in four of people born in Canada.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
The Canadian Institute for Health Information says health-care spending in Canada is projected to reach a new high in 2024.
The annual report released Thursday says total health spending is expected to hit $372 billion, or $9,054 per Canadian.
CIHI’s national analysis predicts expenditures will rise by 5.7 per cent in 2024, compared to 4.5 per cent in 2023 and 1.7 per cent in 2022.
This year’s health spending is estimated to represent 12.4 per cent of Canada’s gross domestic product. Excluding two years of the pandemic, it would be the highest ratio in the country’s history.
While it’s not unusual for health expenditures to outpace economic growth, the report says this could be the case for the next several years due to Canada’s growing population and its aging demographic.
Canada’s per capita spending on health care in 2022 was among the highest in the world, but still less than countries such as the United States and Sweden.
The report notes that the Canadian dental and pharmacare plans could push health-care spending even further as more people who previously couldn’t afford these services start using them.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.
Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
As Canadians wake up to news that Donald Trump will return to the White House, the president-elect’s protectionist stance is casting a spotlight on what effect his second term will have on Canada-U.S. economic ties.
Some Canadian business leaders have expressed worry over Trump’s promise to introduce a universal 10 per cent tariff on all American imports.
A Canadian Chamber of Commerce report released last month suggested those tariffs would shrink the Canadian economy, resulting in around $30 billion per year in economic costs.
More than 77 per cent of Canadian exports go to the U.S.
Canada’s manufacturing sector faces the biggest risk should Trump push forward on imposing broad tariffs, said Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters president and CEO Dennis Darby. He said the sector is the “most trade-exposed” within Canada.
“It’s in the U.S.’s best interest, it’s in our best interest, but most importantly for consumers across North America, that we’re able to trade goods, materials, ingredients, as we have under the trade agreements,” Darby said in an interview.
“It’s a more complex or complicated outcome than it would have been with the Democrats, but we’ve had to deal with this before and we’re going to do our best to deal with it again.”
American economists have also warned Trump’s plan could cause inflation and possibly a recession, which could have ripple effects in Canada.
It’s consumers who will ultimately feel the burden of any inflationary effect caused by broad tariffs, said Darby.
“A tariff tends to raise costs, and it ultimately raises prices, so that’s something that we have to be prepared for,” he said.
“It could tilt production mandates. A tariff makes goods more expensive, but on the same token, it also will make inputs for the U.S. more expensive.”
A report last month by TD economist Marc Ercolao said research shows a full-scale implementation of Trump’s tariff plan could lead to a near-five per cent reduction in Canadian export volumes to the U.S. by early-2027, relative to current baseline forecasts.
Retaliation by Canada would also increase costs for domestic producers, and push import volumes lower in the process.
“Slowing import activity mitigates some of the negative net trade impact on total GDP enough to avoid a technical recession, but still produces a period of extended stagnation through 2025 and 2026,” Ercolao said.
Since the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement came into effect in 2020, trade between Canada and the U.S. has surged by 46 per cent, according to the Toronto Region Board of Trade.
With that deal is up for review in 2026, Canadian Chamber of Commerce president and CEO Candace Laing said the Canadian government “must collaborate effectively with the Trump administration to preserve and strengthen our bilateral economic partnership.”
“With an impressive $3.6 billion in daily trade, Canada and the United States are each other’s closest international partners. The secure and efficient flow of goods and people across our border … remains essential for the economies of both countries,” she said in a statement.
“By resisting tariffs and trade barriers that will only raise prices and hurt consumers in both countries, Canada and the United States can strengthen resilient cross-border supply chains that enhance our shared economic security.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.
