Media Relations Office

The U.S. Department of Labor reported on Thursday that 4.4 million workers filed new unemployment claims last week, bringing the total number of claims to 26 million in just five weeks. Erica Groshen says that today’s data reinforces forecasts of a Great Depression-level unemployment rate by the end of April.

Economics and Business

Industrial and Labor Relations

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Spring is here and being outdoors is important, especially in this time of the COVID-19 pandemic – but it’s important to remember both ticks and people are active outside. Laura Harrington and Jody Gangloff-Kaufmann offer important tips on tick awareness and how prevent their bites while enjoying the outdoors. 

Agriculture and Life Sciences

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Essential workers at online and brick-and-mortar stores have been increasingly vocal with dissatisfaction about how their employers have treated them during the pandemic. Employees at Target and Amazon, among others, are planning mass “sick-outs” to protest what they perceive as management’s disregard for their health and safety. Angela Cornell and Patricia Campos-Medina comment on how the government and consumers must step up to safeguard workers. 

Economics and Business

Industrial and Labor Relations

Law School

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Medical epidemiologist Isaac Weisfuse, says that while in-home testing will help reduce the potential risk for transmission, there is still a critical need for contact tracing.

Health, Nutrition & Medicine

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European Union leaders are meeting on Thursday to discuss how to power the bloc’s economic recovery and help its hardest-hit members weather the current crisis. Christopher Way, associate professor of government and an expert in European politics and political economy, says that the task at hand for European leaders is not easy. 

International

Arts and Sciences

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Maria Cristina Garcia, professor of History and Latino Studies at Cornell University, says that the COVID-19 outbreak has given the White House pretext to advance restrictive immigration policies.

Law and Policy

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Stephen Yale-Loehr and Ian Kysel professors at Cornell Law School comment on Trump's proposed executive order on immigration will almost certainly face both domestic and international legal challenges.

Law and Policy

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U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP). Agricultural economist Andrew Novakovic says while it’s helpful the CFAP will provide assistance for farmers, massive demand destruction still remains as an underlying problem.

Food & Agriculture

Dyson School of Applied Economics & Management

Agriculture and Life Sciences

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On Wednesday, a day after extending its nationwide lockdown, India relaxed restrictions on sectors deemed essential, including the agriculture industry that employs more than half of the Indian population. Prabhu Pingali, professor of economics and director of the Tata-Cornell Institute for Agriculture and Nutrition, says that the decision will help deal with the massive shock the lockdown has imparted to India’s food system.

International

Cornell SC Johnson College of Business

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As the coronavirus pandemic continues to impact the world, a growing number of colleges and universities are waiving standardized test requirements or making them optional. The College Board, which administers the SAT and the ACT, anticipated “an at-home style solution” for testing, and said it would make a formal announcement on Wednesday to clarify their recommendation. Ronald Ehrenberg is professor of industrial and labor relations and economics at Cornell University and the director of the Cornell Higher Education Research Institute.

Industrial and Labor Relations

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