Chicago Tribune (September 24)
“Many employers pushed Labor Day return to office plans back as the delta variant fueled a resurgence in COVID-19 cases—another setback for businesses catering to the Loop’s formerly bustling office crowd. While businesses like coffee and shoe repair shops are optimistic their customers will eventually return, they may be downtown less often and may need time to rebuild old habits.”
Tags: COVID-19, Customers, Delta variant, Downtown, Employers, Labor Day, Loop, Office, Old habits, Resurgence, Return, Setback, Shops
Boston Globe (September 20)
“Back-to-office plans are playing out much differently than anyone expected. Anticipation for a momentous post-Labor Day return has come and gone, but now a growing number of employers are repopulating their offices gradually and on a voluntary basis, rather than pinning all their hopes—and anxieties—onto one date.”
Tags: Anticipation, Employers, Labor Day, Office, Plans, Repopulating, Return
Boston Globe (March 15)
“A year into the COVID-19 pandemic, the timeline for our return to the office is still hazy.” The schedule keeps “getting extended. Some of the area’s biggest companies now have June or July circled on their calendars. Many others are talking about Labor Day [September 6] again. And many aren’t giving any return dates, no matter how tentative, just yet. They’ve been burned before.”
Los Angeles Times (September 1)
“An increase in the minimum wage would not only be good for low-wage workers. It would also be good for the city, good for the economy and, in the long term, good for business. It is, simply put, the right thing to do.” September 1 marks Labor Day in the U.S. where the federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour. Some states and cities adopt higher minimums as Mayor Eric Garcetti has proposed for Los Angeles, where 28% of the population lives below the poverty level. If the proposal passes, L.A.’s new minimum of $13.25 would still be lower than Seattle’s, which is set to rise to $15.
Tags: Business, Economy, Eric Garcetti, Labor Day, Los Angeles, Minimum wage, Poverty level, Seattle, U.S., Workers
