Economy

October 18, 2021 by Sean O'Leary
‘It’s Just Hard to Find Somebody’: Navigating Childcare During the COVID Pandemic

Jackson Newspapers - Patricia Kelly, owner of Precious Memories Kid Care, said it's always been difficult finding childcare employees, but the pandemic has made it worse. Read the full article. COVID-19 caused several of Patricia Kelly's childcare employees to leave. For some, they quit out of caution to stay safe and healthy, others were terminated because…

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October 6, 2021 by Kelly Allen
West Virginians and State Economy Will See Outsized Benefits from the Build Back Better Act

The Build Back Better Act, currently under consideration in Congress where West Virginia’s Senator Joe Manchin will be a deciding vote, would create bold, long-lasting change for West Virginia families, workers, and our state’s economy. The legislation contains landmark policies that will create millions of good jobs nationwide, while also addressing crucial needs in the…

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September 30, 2021 by Sean O'Leary
How Gov. Justice’s Massive Transfer of Pandemic Aid to a Jobless Trust Fund Didn’t Do Much for Some WV Businesses

Mountain State Spotlight, Beckley Register-Herald - When Gov. Jim Justice announced earlier this month that he had put hundreds of millions of dollars in federal pandemic relief aid into West Virginia’s unemployment trust fund, he said it would lead to a “massive reduction” in business costs. Read the full article. But, for many West Virginia businesses,…

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September 20, 2021 by WVCBP
Dear Joe Manchin: Coal Isn’t Your State’s Future

New York Times - So Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia will be responsible for putting together the Democratic climate plan. This is both understandable and terrifying. It’s understandable because Democrats need the vote of every one of their senators, which means doing whatever it takes to get skeptics on board. It’s terrifying because Manchin might end…

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September 16, 2021 by Kelly Allen
ReImagine Appalachia Urges Manchin to Support “Build Back Better”

Pennsylvania Business Report - ReImagine Appalachia, an organization of Pennsylvania, Ohio, Kentucky and West Virginia labor leaders, policy experts and community leaders, urged U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) to support President Joe Biden’s “Build Back Better” legislation in an open letter Sunday. Read the full article. Published as a full-page ad in the Charleston Gazette-Mail,…

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September 16, 2021 by Sean O'Leary
West Virginia’s Unemployment Rate is Back to Normal, but the Economy is Far From Recovered for Everyone

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused tremendous challenges for West Virginia workers, from unsafe working conditions to unprecedented job losses. While some areas of West Virginia’s economy are recovering, the job market is far from pre-pandemic levels and employment gains have not been equally distributed. Further, increasing COVID-19 cases remain a threat to workers' health and…

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September 7, 2021 by Kelly Allen
Poll: More than Half Say W.Va. Economy ‘on the Wrong Track’

West Virginia MetroNews - A little more than half of West Virginia residents believe the state’s economy is on the wrong track. Read the full article. That’s according to the latest MetroNews West Virginia Poll, which surveyed 400 registered voters August 20-25. Fifty-four percent of respondents said the state’s economy is headed the wrong way.…

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September 6, 2021 by WVCBP
How Unions Saved West Virginia Miners from Industrial Oppression

WOWK, Opera News - On Inside West Virginia Politics, Myya Helm is a research associate for the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy who helped write their annual report called “Labor, Race, and Solidarity.” Her study showed the division between Black, White and European miners — the immigrants who came in to fill the…

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September 2, 2021 by Kelly Allen
Administration Pays Off Loan for Unemployment Fund, Spotlights Break for Employers

West Virginia MetroNews - Gov. Jim Justice announced today that the administration paid off the final $185 million on an interest-free federal loan that had been used as cushion for the state’s unemployment trust fund. Read the full article. The administration had set aside hundreds of millions of dollars in CARES Act funding in anticipation of paying…

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