Business

McTeacher's Nights: Teachers Unions Say No To School Fundraisers

7:19pm October 15, 2015

by Allison Aubrey

The fundraising events cast schoolteachers as servers at local McDonald's. Supporters say the events bring families and teachers closer. Critics say they turn teachers into billboards for fast food.

NPR blogger and astrophysicist Adam Frank visited an intersection of many transportation modes to illustrate his point about why infrastructure needs to change.

National

Why The Future Of Transportation Depends On Changing Infrastructure

6:42pm October 15, 2015

by Adam Frank

NPR science blogger and astrophysicist Adam Frank argues infrastructure must change in order to develop new, environmentally friendly forms of transportation.

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Grittier Telenovelas Are Ratings Gold For Telemundo

6:12pm October 15, 2015

by Jasmine Garsd

Telenovelas' standard plots grew stale and viewership was down. Then networks led by Telemundo in the U.S. began producing more realistic and lurid series. And it's working, Telemundos ratings are up.

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Volkswagen Announces Recall Of 8.5 Million Vehicles In Europe

5:20pm October 15, 2015

by John Ydstie

Volkswagen announced Thursday a fourth engineer has been suspended as it continues to investigate the decision to install emissions cheating software on 11 million vehicles. Company officials have suggested only a small number of people knew about the deception. It's a claim many observers find hard to believe.

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Tech Company Hyperloop Doesn't Pay Its Employees — At Least Not In Cash

5:19pm October 15, 2015

by Steve Henn

We've come to expect a steady stream of flashy new gadgets from the booming tech sector, but another area of innovation in Silicon Valley is how we work, mainly the structure of our offices and companies. Planet Money tells the story of a company that has no employees, doesn't pay any salaries, but has hundreds of extremely talented workers nonetheless.

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Arts

Jennifer Lawrence Hits A Nerve With Essay On Hollywood's Gender Pay Gap

4:07pm October 15, 2015

by alexandra starr

The actress berated herself for not pushing for a higher fee for American Hustle after learning male co-stars made more. She says she's "over trying to find the 'adorable' way to state my opinion."

Volkswagen has recalled 8.5 million diesel cars in Europe. The company is ordered to fix software that makes the cars appear to run more cleanly than they actually do.

World News

Volkswagen Latest: Company To Recall 8.5 Million Cars In Europe

4:01pm October 15, 2015

by Laura Wagner

After German authorities ordered the recall of 2.4 million cars in Germany, the automaker announced that it would be recalling 8.5 million diesel vehicles across the European Union.

A state-owned company started building "Liquor City" in a suburb of Luliang to help diversify the economy away from coal. But a massive anti-corruption campaign has damaged demand for expensive Chinese<em> baijiu,</em> or white liquor, and for now, the fa

China's White Elephants: Ghost Cities, Lonely Airports, Desolate Factories

2:49pm October 15, 2015

by Frank Langfitt

China's economic growth is slowing and misallocation of resources is making things worse. In one city in recession, the new airport is mostly empty and plans for a giant liquor factory have stalled.

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Rep. Joe Courtney, D-Conn., proposed a bill in April to repeal the impending excise tax on employee health benefits that Obamacare deems excessive.

Looming Tax On High-End Health Plans Draws Heavy Fire

2:48pm October 15, 2015

by Mark Zdechlik

The next fight about the Affordable Care Act unites business leaders, politicians and many unions against leading economists. Will the 2018 tax reduce health costs or just shift the costs to patients?

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When Businesses Opt Out Of Workers' Comp, Employees May Struggle For Care

2:44pm October 15, 2015

by Howard Berkes

As states consider allowing employers to completely opt out of workers' compensation plans, NPR and ProPublica take a look at how the concept has worked in Texas.

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