Martin Drake is a student at Harvard Law School.
A new study by the National Bureau of Economic research shows that the gig economy is perpetuating the gender pay gap, MarketWatch reports. According to the study, which was distributed on Monday, women Uber drivers earn 93 cents on the dollar compared to men. The study’s authors found that the pay gap is caused by the length of experience women drivers have with Uber, preferences over work hours and location, and driving speed. Another study recently released by Bankrate.com confirms a gender pay gap in the gig economy; according to the Bankrate study, men average $989 per month from gig work compared to women’s $361 per month.
Fired Amazon workers can appeal their discharge to a panel of their co-workers, Bloomberg Businessweek reports. The company announced the appeal program last year, stating that it had been too quick fire employees rather than addressing issues in other ways. The appeal process has a reputation of unfairness, however, and has created resentment among the e-commerce giant’s staff. Seattle employment lawyer George Tamblyn told Bloomberg that the panels are “a kangaroo court.”
A new study shows that almost half of all LGBTQ employees remain closeted at work, USA Today reports. The study, released by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation, found that 46 percent of LGBT employees are not open about their sexuality at work for fear of being stereotyped, making people feel uncomfortable or losing connections with coworkers. The study’s results have only slightly changed since it was first conducted in 2008, when it recorded the number of closeted employees at 51 percent.
In international labor news, a 24-hour general strike in Argentina largely shut down the country’s economic activity on Monday, Al-Jazeera reports. The strike was called by the country’s largest trade union confederation, CGT, and it disrupted bus, train, taxi and airline services. The unions were demanding salary raises and protesting the Argentine government’s $50 billion loan from the IMF. According to the transport ministry, 600 flights were cancelled due to work stoppages and at least 71,000 passengers were affected.
Daily News & Commentary
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March 16
Starbucks' union negotiations are resurrected; jobs data is released.
March 15
A U.S. District Court issues a preliminary injunction against the Department of Veterans Affairs for terminating its collective bargaining agreement, and SEIU files a lawsuit against DHS for effectively terminating immigrant workers at Boston Logan International Airport.
March 13
Republican Senators urge changes on OSHA heat standard; OpenAI and building trades announce partnership on data center construction; forced labor investigations could lead to new tariffs
March 12
EPA terminates contract with second-largest union; Florida advances bill restricting public sector unions; Trump administration seeks Supreme Court assistance in TPS termination.
March 11
The partial government shutdown results in TSA agents losing their first full paycheck; the Fifth Circuit upholds the certification of a class of former United Airline workers who were placed on unpaid leave for declining to receive the COVID-19 vaccine for religious reasons during the pandemic; and an academic group files a lawsuit against the State Department over a policy that revokes and denies visas to noncitizens for their work in fact-checking and content moderation.
March 10
Court rules Kari Lake unlawfully led USAGM, voiding mass layoffs; Florida Senate passes bill tightening union recertification rules; Fifth Circuit revives whistleblower suit against Lockheed Martin.