New Future

A McDonald’s branch in England was recently discovered to have employed Czech slaves. McDonald’s claims the incident is a freak aberration, but the franchise ignored several red flags — and the whole fast-food business model should be called into question.

The International Longshoremen's Association secured a considerable pay raise after a three-day strike that brought port operations to a halt. But the fight against job-killing automation continues.

This week, a Georgia chemical plant suffered yet another accident, releasing toxic fumes into an Atlanta suburb for at least the fourth time. The plant falls into a yawning regulatory loophole that chemical industry lobbying has kept open for years.

The wealthiest members of Congress from both parties — including vice presidential candidate J. D. Vance — have millions invested collectively in private equity funds. In many cases, they are not required to disclose details about these investments.

Canadian private sector demands have long shaped immigration policy. As immigrants are scapegoated for failed economic strategies, Justin Trudeau’s shift in rhetoric — from embracing to blaming — highlights the hypocrisy of a system designed for profit.

As democracies go, Australia isn’t as dysfunctional as the United States. But its electoral system still ensures that many votes are undervalued or wasted.

Eleven of Impact Plastics’s workers were at the company’s Tennessee factory when Hurricane Helene hit. Two are confirmed dead, four are still missing. Workers say the company did not let them leave until it was too late.

After October 7, Israel embarked on an unprecedented massacre. The new book 10/7 — with an afterword by novelist Joshua Cohen — longs for the moment when it was Israel that had the world’s sympathy.

In the years before Hurricane Helene ravaged North Carolina last week, Republican lawmakers and corporate interests continually sabotaged efforts to prepare the state for stronger storms and a rising sea.

In the name of constructive opposition, Marine Le Pen has issued her conditions for tolerating new prime minister Michel Barnier. Her party wants to show it’s ready for high office — but is vaguer about its stance on Barnier’s austerity plans.

The ousting of a popular government official in Seoul last month was linked to Korean laws that bar many workers from engaging in political activity. A draconian system known as the “prosecutor republic” helps conservative elites maintain their power.

Last month, the European Court of Justice issued one of the biggest tax rulings in history, forcing Apple to pay €13 billion to Ireland. But firms like Apple have already teamed up with Irish government officials to devise new ways of avoiding taxes.

At the VP debate, Tim Walz offered lessons for how progressives can communicate their ideas to ordinary Americans. Unfortunately, it’s all in the service of Kamala Harris’s unambitious, corporate-friendly campaign.

In an interview, United Electrical Workers president Carl Rosen talks about the union’s call to halt US military support to Israel and why it’s important that the labor movement speak up against US wars.