This Halloween, Americans are expected to spend a near-record amount of $8.8 billion on costumes and other decorations. While the holiday traditionally attracts a core of committed fans, many are also peer-pressured to jump into the festivity’s spending.  Ori Heffetz, professor of applied economics at Cornell University’s SC Johnson College of Business, is an expert on consumption and studies the psychological, social and cultural aspects of economic behavior. Heffetz says that when it comes to celebrations, Halloween has become the holiday to show off one’s status.

Economics and Business

Cornell SC Johnson College of Business

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On Monday, Thailand’s King Vajiralongkorn stripped his royal consort – Sineenat Wongvajirapakdi – of her official ranks for “repeated disobedience and attempts to of interference with royal affairs.” The palace order comes three months after Sineenat – rumored to be the king’s longtime mistress – was given the official title of royal consort. Tamara Loos, professor of history and Thai studies at Cornell University, says the move is a sign of the King’s newfound absolutism.

International

Arts and Sciences

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The New York City Council is currently voting on a plan to close Rikers Island by 2026 and replace the complex with four new jails in Brooklyn, Manhattan, the Bronx, and Queens. Christopher Wildeman, policy analysis and management professor, studies the consequences of mass imprisonment for inequality, with an emphasis on families, health, and children. He says the the plan to close Rikers would be a major step forward in improving confinement conditions for those incarcerated in New York City.

Human Ecology

Law, Government & Public Policy

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On Thursday, teachers in Chicago went on a strike after their union (CTU) rejected a deal from the Chicago Public Schools (CPS). Lee Adler, an expert on education and collective bargaining at Cornell University’s ILR School, says that to the union’s decision not to take the city’s offer stems from a desire to fix more than just teachers’ salaries.   

Industrial and Labor Relations

Labor Relations & Human Resources

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After prolonged negotiations and a monthlong strike General Motors (GM) reached a preliminary agreement with the United Auto Workers (UAW) on Wednesday about contracts. Arthur Wheaton, an expert of the automotive industry at Cornell University’s ILR School, says that after it’s ratified, the deal will likely affect negotiations at the other two carmaker giants, Ford and Fiat Chrysler. 

Economics and Business

Industrial and Labor Relations

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The report “Stopping Sexual Harassment in the Empire State: Past, Present, and a Possible Future” released by researchers from the Worker Institute at Cornell University’s ILR School found that 10.9% of New York residents report having experienced quid pro quo workplace sexual harassment at some point in their careers. KC Wagner, co-author of the report, has specialized in promoting workplace inclusion and preventing sexual harassment and other forms of gender-based violence for over 30 years.

New York State

Business, Economics & Entrepreneurship

Industrial and Labor Relations

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A new study shows that female academics have disproportionately fewer Twitter followers, likes and retweets than men, regardless of their professional rank or amount of activity on Twitter. Brooke Erin Duffy, professor of communication, studies the intersection of media, culture and technology. Duffy recently published a paper on gender and social media criticism that discusses the impact gender bias on Instagram has on women.

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Following pressure from China, Apple decided to pull HKmap.live from the App Store. The app allowed users to track police presence in Hong Kong, where antigovernment protesters have been demonstrating for months. The removal was announced shortly after Beijing criticized the tech giant in a strongly worded editorial on Wednesday.  Thomas Jungbauer, professor of economics in the SC Johnson College of Business at Cornell University, studies tech firms and high-skilled labor markets. He says that tech companies are walking a fine line as they attempt to develop their Chinese markets

Cornell SC Johnson College of Business

International

Economics and Business

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Steve Reiners, professor of horticulture at Cornell University and a New York state vegetable industry expert, says the 2019 season has some of the best quality pumpkins he’s ever seen.

Food & Agriculture

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Stephen Vider, assistant professor of history at Cornell University, says that the upcoming employment discrimination cases heard by the Supreme Court represent a critical shift in LGBTQ+ law.  

Law and Policy

Social & Behavioral Sciences

Arts & Humanities

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