A major story in this morning's (April 4) New York Times raises serious questions about a company named Talx, which is owned by Equifax. Talx helps employers process and contest unemployment claims. Companies hire Talx to fight ex-employees' unemployment claims, because "when fewer former workers get aid, a company pays lower unemployment taxes," says the Times. The Times quotes critics saying that Talx "has undermined a crucial safety net" and is "a chronic source of error and delay" in unemployment claims matters.

My column of April 16, 2008, told how Copley Press hired Talx to fight its former employees' unemployment claims. In that case, the people had taken so-called voluntary buyouts from the company, which was then in the process of radically slashing employment. The company had warned that if enough people didn't take the purportedly voluntary buyouts, there would be layoffs.The former employees argued that their jobs had been changed so that their expertise was no longer needed -- say, they had gone from a specialist to a generalist. Since their pay was higher than that of other generalists, they knew they would likely be axed. It was a case of "jump or be pushed," said one former employee. Talx represented Copley in the contesting of a number of claims. Copley didn't always win. The column stated, "It may be another indication that ownership is trying to slash costs to sell the company." A few months later, Copley put the paper up for sale. The deal was consummated last year.