BossFeed Briefing for July 3, 2017. After multiple months and several special sessions, the Washington State Legislature on Friday finally agreed on a state budget just hours before a deadline which could have forced state government to shut down. Also on Friday, the Trump Administration argued that overtime protections should not be expanded to cover lower-wage managers. On Saturday, Seattle's landmark secure scheduling law took effect. And last Wednesday, U.S. Senate leaders paused their efforts repeal affordable healthcare protections; it’s unclear what happens in the weeks ahead.
Photo by David Bacon
Three things to know this week:
The Washington State Legislature passed paid family leave late Friday evening (!) Workers will be able to access up to 12 weeks of paid family leave, and up to 12 weeks of paid medical leave.
Confounding everyone with a grip on reality, a group of researchers managed to find a way to make Seattle’s booming economy look like it's bad for workers despite more jobs at higher wages and record-low unemployment. It was an impressive accomplishment in a way, but doesn’t really stand up to scrutiny.
Minneapolis has become the first city in the Midwest to pass a $15 minimum wage. Meanwhile, St. Louis is being forced to lower its minimum wage from $10/hour to $7.70/hour.
Two things to ask:
How do you spell solidarity? When New York Times corporate management announced major cuts to copy editors at the paper, hundreds of reporters walked out in protest. The paper responded… with an offer to repond to questions about the "restructuring" selected by editors from reader emails.
How do they come up with this stuff? Facebook trains thousands of content screeners on some curious distinctions between speech targeting an entire group, which they say can be barred, and speech targeted at a “subset” of a group, which they consider aok. According to leaked corporate training materials, "female drivers” and “black children” are considered “subsets” of groups and therefore not protected; “white men,” however, are a protected category against which hate speech is not allowed per their training.
And one thing that’s worth a closer look:
The apple pickers of Yakima Valley are featured in a beautiful and pointed photo series by David Bacon, who is perhaps the premier photographer of work in the country today. Bacon’s photo essay in The Atlantic combines striking black-and-white images with sharp and clear captions which tell the story of these workers with ferocious power and economy. Bacon’s work is always worth seeking out; when it’s this close to home it’s worth savoring.
Read this far?
Consider yourself briefed, boss.
The BossFeed Briefing is our weekly look at the world of work, wages, and inequality.