Two years after Sri Lanka’s worst economic crisis since the great depression and default on its external debt, citizens of the South Asian island elected leftist Anura Kumara Dissanayake as president. Dissanayake is a member of the leftist JVP party that once waged violent insurrections in the early 1970s and late 1980s, but has since adopted more moderate policies and is now calling on the International Monetary Fund to scale back its harsh debt repayment plan.
(“An Upset in Sri Lanka Propels an Outsider into Power,” Economist, Sept. 23, 2024; “Sri Lanka’s New President Faces a Problem Shared by Too Many Other Developing Countries,” Guardian, Sept. 28, 2024)
The National Labor Relations Board filed a complaint against retail giant Amazon for illegally refusing to bargain with a union representing drivers employed by a contractor. The NLRB complaint claims that Amazon is a so-called “joint employer” of drivers employed by the contractor, Battle Tested Strategies (or BTS), and used a series of illegal tactics to discourage union activities at a facility in Palmdale, California.
(“Amazon Hit with US Labor Board Complaint over ‘Joint Employment’ of Drivers,” Reuters, Oct. 2, 2024; “Amazon Delivery Drivers Sign Union Cards,” American Prospect, Sept. 16, 2024)
On the campaign trail Vice President Kamala Harris talks about the nation’s housing crisis, but has failed to issue a detailed policy that protects tenants from unsustainable rent increases. During the presidential debate, Harris put Trump on the defensive by calling for new housing construction and downpayment assistance. But the Democratic nominee rarely uses the words “tenants” or “renters” in her campaign speeches.
(“For Harris, Housing Takes Center Stage but Tenants Are Not the Audience,” The Nation, Sept. 19, 2024)
