Bots vs. Humans

Covid-19 has led some companies to turn to automation to deal with growing demand, closed offices, or budget constraints. But for other companies, the pandemic has provided cover for executives to implement ambitious automation plans they dreamed up long ago.

There’s a new employee in town, R.P.A. (robotic process automation) is beginning to take hold in professions across the board, making life easier for some and costing jobs for others. The workers most at risk for being affected when companies turn to these programs for increased ROI are the highly educated. Read more here: The Robots Are Coming for Phil in Accounting

Employees vs Shareholders

Many workers have been laid off or furloughed since the beginning of the Corona virus pandemic. As companies close stores, curtail production and shed employees, some are continuing to pay shareholders. Even though this may be a “bigger” picture issue, the optics of these business practices is not likely to win support. The Washington Post reports that Caterpillar, Levi Strauss, and Stanley Black and Decker have all chosen shareholders over employees. Deciding who will bear the brunt of the current economic climate is tough, but should it be the workers?

U.S. companies cut thousands of workers while continuing to reward shareholders during pandemic

How The Younger Set Lives

Millennials are getting the raw end of the deal. Both state and national policies tend to favor the older and more affluent. Medicare costs often outweigh money paid in taxes by those who benefit, and programs that support higher education have been cut, leaving students with more debt. The millennials of our country have flat incomes and wealth is down.

What can be done about this issue? How do we insure financial safety for the youngest members of the workforce? Not to be left behind, many of this set are finding their way into politics. Maybe this will be the answer?

Opinion

The Fleecing of Millennials

Money Talk

Many of us shy away from discussing our salaries with others. Employers often forbid this practice, although it’s illegal to do so in the private sector. Another reason we may feel uncomfortable talking about money is that we see it as self-worth, not just an amount we are paid to do a job. Tim Herrera for the New York Times, Smarter Living, encourages these discussions as a way to expose pay discrepancies.

“I can remember in the not-too-distant past having been discouraged from talking about wages,” Ms. Cornell said. She added that years ago she learned through a conversation about salaries with a male co-worker that he was making about $50,000 more than her, and that there was “no objective justification for the disparity in pay, but he had been in the position for a longer period of time.”

Herrera encourages co-workers to not be afraid of these conversations but to approach them with genuine interest and the idea of mutual benefit.

Why You Should Tell Your Co-Workers How Much Money You Make

New Tax Changes Affect Gifting Money to Minors

As the end of school approaches, many parents and grandparents consider college expenses for their children. What once was an easy and low-tax way to give money to younger children will soon cost a good deal more. Ashley Ebeling for Forbes explores the changes in the so called “Kiddie Tax” in her article, The Kiddie Tax Grows Up: Beware The IRA Trap

Have You Written a Money Letter?

Dear Reader,

Did you know that writing a simple “money” letter to your children will have more of an impact on their spending habits than just telling them your thoughts and feelings about money?

This week, why not think back to your biggest money successes and failures (these are often most helpful), put pen to paper and send your child a note that can have a deep and lasting effect on their lives? If you’re lucky, they’ll listen to your advice and you might even find yourself featured in a book, like Gail Shearer did when her daughter Kimberly wrote the book, Smart Mom, Rich Mom, based on the money letter she received from her mother.

Need advice on just what to say? Check out this article from the New York Times, The Money Letter That Every Parent Should Write.

Who Has The Higher Unemployment Rate?

This month, many high school graduates walked the stage and are now preparing for the next step in their education. Will the college training they seek really help them get a better job and make more money? According to the current unemployment statistics, the answer to that question is, Yes. Quoctrung Bui for the New York Times highlights this point in the article, The One Question Most Americans Get Wrong About College Graduates. Even when the economy is down and college grads have difficulty finding work, those with degrees have a better chance of acquiring sustainable jobs that ultimately make more money than their non-degreed counterparts.

Beg, Borrow or Buy?

Invest or borrow? Kim Myles offers great advice about when to purchase or borrow eight key items in her article, Save Money, Save Space: 8 Things to Borrow Instead of Buy. From air mattresses to tools to serving dishes, consider her wisdom about storage space and necessity before you make that next impulse buy for a weekend guest or dinner party.

Low-Income Public Housing?

Studies are finding that many people living in low-inclome, public housing are exceeding the income limits per individuals residing in the home. Texas has the second highest number of families in the US whose monthly income is over this line. In some cases these numbers are grossly inflated. As the article states, trying to remedy this issue has many factors, one being not wanting to evict people for being successful, but this housing is often quite limited and highly sought after. What would you do in this situation?

High-Income Texans Find Homes in Public Housing

Fire Up The Grill?

Did you know that America throws out literally tons of coffee grounds per day? Rich Bruins, a once college minister who took a group of students on mission to Guatemala, a huge coffee producer, discovered a way to re-make parts of the coffee waste. With some slight changes, he has brought his idea to the US in the form of Coffee Coals, which outperform charcoal in ignition and BTUs. Want to know more, check out the whole article, This Morning’s Coffee Grounds Could Be the Fuel to Cook Tonight’s Dinner. Ever imagine that coffee would fuel more than your caffeine addiction?