BossFeed Briefing for December 6th, 2023
It’s getting very dark very early. The comms team has been utilizing fireplace screensavers. Gotta remember to pick up some vitamin D soon. Meanwhile the “pineapple express” is currently coursing over our state. Stay safe out there!
THREE THINGS TO KNOW THIS WEEK:
More slaps on the wrist: McDonalds is in trouble again for violating child labor laws. Five stores in Pennsylvania were employing 34 children who were 14-15 years old and breaking numerous rules in the process. What did one of the world’s biggest companies have to pay as a result? Under $1,000 per child.
Know. Your. Rights: Seattle-based restaurant Skillet Group settled for $318,782.48 to 181 employees for violating multiple worker rights. In a former worker’s words: “I always assumed there was a legal exemption which meant we were not entitled to rest or meal breaks. There is not. That is illegal.”
Attn: Renton: Renton City Council voted down a minimum wage increase on Monday, but it goes to voters in February to decide. Currently Renton workers make the state minimum wage of $15.74/hr, but a grassroots initiative scored twice the needed number of signatures to get a $19/hr minimum wage vote rolling.
TWO THINGS TO ASK:
See something? Say something. Washington saw 80 trauma-related workplace deaths last year, almost all violations of a safety standard. L&I would need approx. 60 years to safety check every jobsite just once, so nearly all of their visits are based on reports & complaints.
Ready to celebrate? T-minus 38 days until the Seattle gig worker minimum pay standard goes into effect! This policy provides not just a pay floor, but also the transparency and flexibility app-based workers deserve.
AND ONE THING THAT'S WORTH A CLOSER LOOK:
On that note, great news coming out of the Big Apple this week – app-based delivery workers in NYC have secured a major minimum pay win. Uber, DoorDash, and GrubHub will have to pay New York food delivery workers at least $17.96 an hour after they failed to convince an appeals court to block the minimum pay rule. The court rejected efforts by the companies to overturn a decision by a judge allowing the rule to go into effect. The ruling forces delivery services to pay workers the flat hourly rate or pay per delivery at about 50 cents a minute.
Read this far? Consider yourself briefed, boss.
Let us know what you think about this week's look at the world of work, wages, and inequality!