Michelle Chen

Contributing Writer

@meeshellchen

Michelle Chen is a contributing writer for The Nation.

A solitary confinement cell

You Either Work or You Go to Jail You Either Work or You Go to Jail

Parole and probation are trapping former prisoners in debt, forcing them to work to avoid getting locked up.

Apr 12, 2016 / Michelle Chen

Baltimore Row Houses

Can Neighborhoods Be Revitalized Without Gentrifying Them? Can Neighborhoods Be Revitalized Without Gentrifying Them?

Baltimore’s new housing plan could provide a form of neighborhood uplift that benefits communities, not developers.

Apr 11, 2016 / Michelle Chen

Fight for 15 protesters in Los Angeles

We Are Winning the Fight for $15 We Are Winning the Fight for $15

What started with 200 workers striking in New York has ballooned into a national movement wielding real political power.

Apr 6, 2016 / Michelle Chen

The Uber app being used in front of a taxicab.

Gig Economy Jobs Don’t Have to Be Awful Gig Economy Jobs Don’t Have to Be Awful

The on-demand economy tends to be great for the consumer and bad for the worker—but it doesn’t have to be that way.

Apr 4, 2016 / Michelle Chen

Flint Water Plant tower

Private Infrastructure Contracting May Be a Quick Way to Round Up Capital, but Does It Create Lasting Jobs? Private Infrastructure Contracting May Be a Quick Way to Round Up Capital, but Does It Create Lasting Jobs?

To avoid “disaster capitalism,” community organizations need to be deeply involved.

Apr 1, 2016 / Michelle Chen

Protester outside jail

How Did a Homeless Fast-Food Worker End Up Dead in a Jail Cell? How Did a Homeless Fast-Food Worker End Up Dead in a Jail Cell?

Jeffery Pendleton was arrested on a Tuesday. By Sunday, he was dead.

Mar 30, 2016 / Michelle Chen

Baker at co-op

Worker Cooperatives Are More Productive Than Normal Companies Worker Cooperatives Are More Productive Than Normal Companies

When maximizing profits isn’t the only goal, companies can actually work better.

Mar 28, 2016 / Michelle Chen

ICE protesters

These Refugees Are Being Returned to the Violent Circumstances They Left Behind These Refugees Are Being Returned to the Violent Circumstances They Left Behind

For some asylum seekers, their “well-founded” fear of persecution is proven only after they’re repatriated.

Mar 25, 2016 / Michelle Chen

Whiteness Still Pays in the Job Market

Whiteness Still Pays in the Job Market Whiteness Still Pays in the Job Market

Resume “whitening,” according to a new study, is still an effective way to land an interview—even among “equal opportunity” employers.

Mar 24, 2016 / Michelle Chen

Worker safety

Until Last Year, No One Was Tracking Workplace Injuries Until Last Year, No One Was Tracking Workplace Injuries

Now that the government’s occupational safety agency is, the findings aren’t pretty.

Mar 22, 2016 / Michelle Chen

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