Earlier this week, the Democratic Presidential candidates held another debate, the first in which former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg participated. Readers might remember that he had been under fire in recent weeks for the use of confidentiality agreements at his company, with many accusing him of hiding behind sexual harassment issues by using the confidentiality agreements to block discussion of the topic. At this week's debate, Senator Elizabeth Warren came after him on that very topic, charging that Bloomberg was hiding behind the confidentiality agreements and not being transparent in what actually happened at his company under his watch. While that topic might have merited a discussion, below, there are a few more pressing matters that I think deserve the spotlight this week.
As always, below are a couple articles that caught my eye this week.
Democratic Senators Call on Amazon to Answer For Workplace Injuries
Last Monday, several Senators including Sherrod Brown, Bernie Sanders, and Tammy Baldwin sent a letter to Amazon CEO, Jeff Bezos, asking for answers as to why there have been an apparent uptick in workplace injuries at Amazon. In the letter, Amazon was instructed to take steps to reduce the workplace injuries, including requests to minimize quotas and no longer track employee breaks. Whether this letter will actually result in any changes at Amazon is unlikely. However, with Senator Sanders in the midst of a much expected drawn out fight for the Democratic nomination for President, I would expect him to use his pulpit to draw continued attention to the topic.
Uber & Lyft Drivers Push Back, Demand Enforcement of AB 5 & Back Wages
It seems like hardly a week goes by without an update/development in the ongoing enforcement (and fight against) AB 5, the controversial legislation approved last year in California which codified the ABC Test making it easier to classify workers as employees rather than independent contractors. While Uber & Lyft have taken steps to get a measure on the ballot to have voters overturn the legislation, last week over 100 Uber & Lyft drivers filed wage claims with the California Labor Commissioner’s Office, seeking to be classified as employees and reimbursed for back wages. As Carolyn Said at The San Francisco Chronicle writes, these workers are upset, to put it mildly, that they have not seen the expected enforcement of AB 5 like they thought would happen upon passage of the legislation.
Florida Farmers Push Back Against E-Verify Bill
With Florida Congressmen and Governor Ron DeSantis making an E-Verify bill a focal point and priority, many farmers in Florida are beginning to voice their opposition. The legislation would require farmers in the state to verify each new hire’s eligibility to work in the U.S. via the E-Verify system. However, many of these farmers worry that the legislation would deal a crippling blow to the already meager pool of workers in the state. Perhaps there will be some sort of compromise reached, but with Republicans holding majority control in the Legislature, if they want to push this proposal through, they likely have the votes to do so.
The #MeToo Movement Brings Change to Victoria’s Secret’s Workplace Culture
The Los Angeles Times published an article recently in which it recognized the effect that the #MeToo movement and advocacy groups (including one led by former model Sara Ziff) have had on Victoria’s Secret’s workplace culture. As a result of these efforts, last year Victoria’s Secret implemented new policies to better protect its models from abuse and harassment. These changes included providing private dressing rooms for models; not allowing models to be alone with a photographer or makeup person; having an independent monitor present at photo shoots to ensure compliance; and providing an ethics hotline to report abuse and harassment. (Prior to 2018, Victoria’s Secret did not have any definitive policy in place.) While these new policies have been met with generally positive responses, there is still criticism that these models are at a disadvantage as they do not have a union that can advocate on their behalf and be more able to bring about change (as opposed to hotel housekeepers at hotels that do have union representation.) As a result, there are calls on upper management at L Brands Inc. (the parent company of Victoria’s Secret) to implement and model, pardon the pun, these new policies from the top down.
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