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Workers around the world are walking out as they demand higher wages in the face of rising inflation.

Why it matters: Labor tensions are crippling key areas of global supply chains, which will likely put even more pressure on prices everywhere.

State of play: Britain is facing a “summer of discontent” as everyone from railway and postal workers to teachers are striking, the New York Times reports.

In Germany, some 8,000 dock workers went on strike last week, impacting at least six major ports and causing goods to be stuck.

In France, striking workers separately threatened to shut down an Exxon refinery and disrupted Paris’ main airports.

In South Korea, truckers last month went on an eight-day strike, curbing operations across businesses, including ones that make steel and computer chips. Meanwhile, Hyundai’s unionized workers in the country just voted for a possible strike.

What to watch: U.S. workers — out of anger and a sense of urgency — have been organizing in unprecedented ways.

Workers everywhere want higher wages

Labor tensions are crippling key areas of global supply chains, likely to put even more pressure on prices.

striking workers hold up a sign that in Spanish says how much they're getting paid in different countries

Demonstrators outside El Prat Airport in Barcelona, Spain; Photo: Angel Garcia/Bloomberg

Labor

Workers around the world are walking out as they demand higher wages in the face of rising inflation.Why it matters: Labor tensions are crippling key areas of global supply chains, which will likely put even more pressure on prices everywhere.

After a record economic expansion, the coronavirus pandemic sent the U.S. economy into a recession as unemployment soared to staggering heights. The country now faces urgent questions about how much stimulus is needed for reeling consumers and businesses, and what a recovery might look like.

Economy & Business

China is becoming the most formidable rival America has faced, and the risk of confrontation with Russia, North Korea or Iran still looms. Authoritarians are rising, the chaotic Afghanistan exit revealed the limits of U.S. power, and the pandemic, climate change and other critical challenges continue to pose grave threats.

Workers everywhere want higher wages

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