Get ready for a labor shortage

We’re also covering:

• The blue-collar boom could save the US from recession.
• A group of judges is trying to solve the Clarence Thomas problem.
• How one person gets away with working two full-time remote gigs.

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Vice, Lee, & Ukraine

• Vice filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, listing assets and liabilities in the range of $500 million to $1 billion. Read more.
• Cash App’s founder, Bob Lee, was having an affair with the sister of the man accused of killing him, sources told The Wall Street Journal. What to know.
• Footage showed massive explosions in the Ukrainian city of Khmelnytskyi following an attack by Russian drones. View the footage.

Forever Labor Shortage

Ever since the baby boom that followed World War II, companies have enjoyed a never-ending supply of workers to tap, Insider’s Aki Ito writes. Hate your job? Fine — we’ll just replace you with one of the hundred others who would be happy to fill your shoes. 

But the baby boomers, unlike their parents, didn’t have many babies themselves.

Now, as boomers retire in droves, companies are suddenly finding themselves without an endless reserve of workers — and the consequential labor shortage is just getting started.

So what does the labor shortage mean for workers in the years ahead? The bottom line is there will be an all-out competition for their services. But be warned: Employers won’t take it lying down.

Judges, automakers, & more

• An obscure panel of judges is trying to solve the Clarence Thomas problem. The little-known Committee on Financial Disclosure is now in the spotlight. It’s tasked with assessing Thomas’ failure to disclose a string of favors from a billionaire. Our full story.
• These nine European countries guarantee at least five weeks of paid vacation a year. In the US, many companies have about two weeks of paid time off. Swedish workers, however, are guaranteed four consecutive, paid summer weeks off. Get the full list.
• Blue-collar workers could save the US from a recession. White-collar workers (like those in tech) are slowly withering. But blue-collar workers are blossoming — many US workers are turning to it for better pay and job security.
• Chase is opening airport lounges in the US as it takes a page from Amex’s playbook. The first Chase Sapphire Lounge opens up at Boston Logan International Airport this week — with similar lounges set to open in Las Vegas, New York, and Philadelphia in the coming months. Look inside.
• A 22-year-old works two full-time jobs and makes $144,000. Neither of his employers knows, and he isn’t super concerned they might find out. He’s been living this dual life since 2021 and shared five strategies to prevent getting caught.
• A Gen Zer who switched careers to data analytics learned all the skills from YouTube. The move changed his life. It’s given him a 40% salary bump along with much stronger benefits. Now, he says he and his wife can travel and have paid down their debt. More here.
• Automakers and dealers are playing a game of chicken — and customers could be the winners. Some dealers are looking to shift a surplus of cars through a range of incentives. But automakers want to keep prices high. Read why the consumer may come out on top.

‘The White Lotus’

Moulin Rouge

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