Sophia is a student at Harvard Law School and a member of the Labor and Employment Lab.
In today’s news and commentary, the Met Museum workers unionize; a new report reveals a $0.76 average tip for gig workers in NYC; and U.S. workers receive the smallest share of capital since 1947.
On Friday, employees of the Metropolitan Museum of Art voted 542 to 172 in favor of joining the United Automobile Workers Local 2110. The bargaining unit includes workers from various departments such as conservation, curatorial, education, and retail. The exact size of the unit, however, is still evolving because museum officials challenged the eligibility of over 100 staff who cast votes in the representation election. The union said it could end up representing almost 900 employees—around half of the museum’s total workforce. UAW Local 2110 currently represents workers from several other major New York City museums and arts organizations including the Guggenheim Museum, Brooklyn Museum, Whitney Museum, and Museum of Modern Art.
A new report released by the NYC Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) found that the average tip on Uber Eats and DoorDash is $0.76 per delivery—a sharp drop from the $3.66 average tip two years ago. The report also shows that the tips for UberEats and DoorDash delivery workers fell by over $550 million, while tips for delivery workers on rival platforms remained steady. In December 2023—when the city began enforcement of the Minimum Pay Rate for Delivery Workers—UberEats and DoorDash moved the tipping prompts to less prominent locations in their respective apps, and within a week, the average tips for both apps fell from $3.66 to $0.93. The DCWP estimates that these “design tricks” have cost delivery workers about $5,800 in lost tips per year.
The latest labor productivity and costs report by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics found that the national labor share—the portion of U.S. economic output that workers receive through salaries and wages—decreased to 53.8% in the third quarter of 2025. This labor share is the lowest level since the BLS began tracking the metric in 1947, though profits for Fortune 500 companies hit a record $1.87 trillion in 2024. This data showing U.S. workers getting the smallest slice of the national economic pie in recorded history reaffirms growing concerns about economic inequality in the United States.
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February 6
The California Supreme Court rules on an arbitration agreement, Trump administration announces new rule on civil service protections, and states modify affirmative action requirements
February 5
Minnesota schools and teachers sue to limit ICE presence near schools; labor leaders call on Newsom to protect workers from AI; UAW and Volkswagen reach a tentative agreement.
February 4
Lawsuit challenges Trump Gold Card; insurance coverage of fertility services; moratorium on layoffs for federal workers extended
February 3
In today’s news and commentary, Bloomberg reports on a drop in unionization, Starbucks challenges an NLRB ruling, and a federal judge blocks DHS termination of protections for Haitian migrants. Volatile economic conditions and a shifting political climate drove new union membership sharply lower in 2025, according to a Bloomberg Law report analyzing trends in labor […]
February 2
Amazon announces layoffs; Trump picks BLS commissioner; DOL authorizes supplemental H-2B visas.
February 1
The moratorium blocking the Trump Administration from implementing Reductions in Force (RIFs) against federal workers expires, and workers throughout the country protest to defund ICE.