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Economics in the News - Sept. 20-26, 2021 HOW ECONOMICS IMPACTS OUR LIVES ON A DAILY BASIS

Economics impacts our lives every day. Below are some of the top storylines from this past week related to economics.

"Talent is cheaper than table salt. What separates the talented individual from the successful one is a lot of hard work." -- Stephen King, author
How will a future of electric vehicles impact jobs, as society transitions away from the internal combustion engine vehicles? A report from the Economic Policy Institute warned that it would take government subsidies and a focus on developing a domestic supply chain to avoid job losses.

Electric vehicles have fewer moving parts and require less labor to manufacture than their internal combustion engine counterparts. Without additional government investment, automobile manufacturers could lose about 75,000 jobs by 2030. However, if government subsidies targeted electric vehicle components made domestically, 150,000 jobs could be added. [The New York Times]

Should you list your COVID-19 vaccination status on your resume when seeking a job? An August survey of 1,250 hiring managers found that 70 percent admitted that they’d be more likely to hire someone who admits they’ve been fully vaccinated. A third of hiring managers said that they wouldn’t consider a person that doesn’t list their vaccination status on their resume.

As more companies are putting in place vaccine mandates, hiring managers are trying to hire talented people who have already complied with company policy. Those opposed to including vaccination status on a resume say that it’s on the companies to ask about it upfront and that candidates should be considered solely based on their abilities and qualifications. [The Wall Street Journal]

California is fighting the largest fire in its history near Lake Tahoe. Fire chiefs are rolling out a new fleet of hi-tech helicopters to fight the fires at night as part of an $18 million pilot program. The most notable helicopter in the program is the Chinook – a common military helicopter.

The Chinook can drop 3,000 gallons of water of fire retardant from a specially-designed tank operating by computer control. It’s allowing firefighters to fight fires at their weakest time of day – at night – for the first time since a mid-air collision in the 1970s. [60 Minutes]

The Caribbean island of Montserrat had to get creative in attracting tourists' dollars coming in while keeping the island safe from COVID-19. Many of the Caribbean islands devised plans to lure remote workers to their islands.

Montserrat designed a program that limited the number of visitors, but included a minimum visit of two months and earn at least $70,000 a year. They must pass a rigorous background check. Visitors have nearly exclusive access to beaches in a place where there have been just 33 confirmed positive COVID-19 cases reported. [The New York Times]

Ports in the United States have continued to see bottlenecks, impacting every level of the supply chain. The U.S. supply chain hasn’t adapted well to the rush of imports that are stuck waiting in ports.

While ports in the United States close in non-working hours and on Sundays, major ports in Europe and Asia remain open 24/7. Containers have piled up at ports because there are too few truck drivers. Truck drivers are delayed at the warehouses they deliver the containers to. The delays continue because of a shortage of workers at each level. [The Wall Street Journal]

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All images credited to iStock