Free trade may or may not be good for America as a whole, but one thing's for sure - it hurts for some American workers whose jobs get shipped overseas.

The feds help out some of these workers by paying for job training and income insurance (for workers over 50 who find lower paying jobs, the feds will make up 50% of their paycut up to $10,000) when their factories close as a result of a free trade agreement.

The current trade adjustment assistance (TAA) law is running out (it just got extended to March) and Congress is likely to expand the law when it gets renewed. The House passed an updated bill, HR 3920, in November '07 and the Senate is working on its own. Some of the changes the House and Senate are considering include:

"It’s Money in the Bank", as they say...

The question is whose bank. With typical Democratic donors from Wall Street finding new recipients for their annual political giving, specifically, the men and women on the other side of the aisle, this week could serve as a reaching out party for many individual dems, as well as certain democrat-particular circles. (NYT)

Issue in Brief

What's going on?

Facts

With the US economy humming, the living is easy – or is it? Although there has been a steady increase in employment and an increase in real wages, there are still some that worry about threats to employment – with outsourcing topping the list.

Workforce

• How many Americans are working (Total) BLS

  • June 2006: 143.2 million

  • May 2005: 141.5 million

  • May 2004: 139 million