Category: Economy & Work
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The Gig Economy: Your Taxes, Benefits, and Rights
Gig income is taxable with or without a 1099. Self-employment tax, the restored $20,000 1099-K threshold, June 15 estimated payments, and your rights, explained.
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Overtime Rules: Who Is Owed Time and a Half
Federal law requires time and a half after 40 hours for most workers. Where the $684-a-week exempt salary threshold stands in 2026, and the myths that cost people pay.
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What a Recession Actually Is (and Who Gets to Decide)
The two-negative-quarters rule is not the real definition. How the NBER’s dating committee actually calls recessions, why it waits, and what that means for you.
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How Wage Garnishment Works (and the Money They Can’t Touch)
Federal law caps how much of your paycheck a creditor can garnish and shields Social Security in the bank. The limits, the exceptions, and your rights.
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Inflation Check: What the Latest CPI Says About Your Real Costs
Gasoline drove the sharpest monthly CPI jump in years while groceries cooled. What the March inflation report means for your budget before April data lands.
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What the April Jobs Report Says About Who’s Hiring
Employers added 115,000 jobs in April and unemployment held at 4.3%. Where the hiring actually is: health care, warehouses, retail, and who is cutting.
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Unemployment Benefits: How Much You’d Get and For How Long
Unemployment checks range from $235 a week in Mississippi to over $1,000 in Massachusetts, for 12 to 30 weeks. How your state’s math works, in plain English.
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Why Your Paycheck Buys Less Even After a Raise
Wages rose 3.5 percent over the year through March 2026, but inflation took almost all of it. What BLS real earnings data say about your pay.