Tagged: European Union (EU)

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12:05pm

Fri August 10, 2012
Planet Money

How A Pasta Factory Got People To Show Up For Work

Originally published on Mon August 13, 2012 8:06 am

Credit Robert Smith / NPR

Zoe Chace and Robert Smith are reporting from European borders this week. This story is about the unofficial border within one country — the border that divides northern and southern Italy. This is the fourth story in a four-part series.

A decade ago, the Barilla pasta factory in Foggia, Italy, had a big problem with people skipping work. The absentee rate was around 10 percent.

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12:59am

Fri August 10, 2012
Planet Money

Why Don't More Unemployed Spaniards Get Jobs In Germany?

Originally published on Mon August 13, 2012 9:22 am

Credit iStockphoto.com

Zoe Chace and Robert Smith are reporting from European borders this week. This is the third story in a four-part series.

The eurozone was supposed to create one big labor market by making it easy to cross borders for work.

But Gerhard Wiegelmann, a CEO in Stuttgart, Germany, can't find enough workers to staff his company — even with unemployment in Spain over 20 percent. He's had to turn down projects because he can't hire enough people.

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10:45am

Thu August 9, 2012
Planet Money

The Marijuana Trade In The Euro's Birthplace

Originally published on Mon August 13, 2012 8:26 am

Credit Ermindo Armino / AP

Zoe Chace and Robert Smith are reporting from European borders this week. This is the second story in a four-part series.

Maastricht, a town in the Netherlands, is known largely for two things.

  1. The treaty that created the euro was signed there.
  2. Marijuana is legal there, and it's sold at "coffee shops" around town.

This is the story of the troubled relationship between those two claims to fame.

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1:22am

Thu August 9, 2012
Planet Money

The Building That's In Two Countries At Once

Originally published on Thu August 9, 2012 12:43 pm

Credit Robert Smith / NPR

Zoe Chace and Robert Smith are reporting from European borders this week. This is the first story in a four-part series.

A metal strip on the floor of Eurode Business Center marks the border between Germany and the Netherlands.

On one side of the building, there's a German mailbox and a German policeman. On the other side, a Dutch mailbox and a Dutch policeman.

The building was supposed to make it easy to work in both countries. But it's also a reminder of how the European dream isn't yet a reality.

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