A union representing 13,000 Boston-area janitors and the organization representing local building owners reached a four-year contract deal tonight that will stave off a planned strike.
In a statement, the union, 32BJ SEIU, said: Read more.
The Boston Business Journal reports the workers voted overwhelmingly to walk off the job in two weeks if their union and the university can't come to a contract agreement. Workers are seeking annual salaries of at least $35,000 and more affordable health insurance.
A federal railroad law passed in 1938 means the two railroads don't have to comply with a state law - passed by voters in 2014 - that requires Massachusetts employers to set aside paid sick leave for their workers. Read more.
Industries have a life cycle just like humans . Like a person’s childhood, teenage years, adulthood and golden years, industries have distinct life stages. A local example is the Nantucket whaling industry. Let’s review the lifecycle.
1659: Nantucket settled.
1752: Start up stage. Whaling voyages begin. The market for clean burning whale oil is small but growing. Industry profits are negative and large amounts of capital are required to build ships and train mariners.
1760-1789: Growth stage. In this stage capital requirements are still high, but sales grow rapidly and profits are positive.
Paragon Park had a gaudy fortune telling machine in its arcade. It was called Grandma’s Prophesies and it looked like a heavily made up corpse laid out in an upright casket. But deposit fifty cents though and good old grandma sprung to life. Light bulb eyeballs lit up, the creaky head spun, and her fiberglass hands moved over a glowing crystal ball. The mystical music added to the experience along with the scents of fresh cotton candy and the Nantasket sea breeze. When grandma finished with her plexi glass enclosed gyrations, a fortune card was dispensed. The card was supposed contain to wisdom that only she could see.
The doorbell has an eerie echo tonight, as if it’s vocalizing your disdain for what is happening next. After years of procrastination you finally decided to meet with a financial planner. Retirement is on the horizon and you need to make the most of your savings.
As the clean-cut advisor crosses the threshold you notice his expensive designer clothing. With impeccable manners he makes eye contact as he firmly shakes your hand. Then, he even goes so far as to compliment the interior decorating of your humble home. That’s exactly the sing-song you expected and the rock in your stomach only grows.
Most people struggle to pick a career. It’s considered a stroke of good luck if someone finds their vocation, a job that they truly enjoy. I do consider myself a lucky man, but I wouldn’t exactly say the leprechauns were looking out for me the day I started on my career path. I’m also not sure that I found financial planning. Maybe it found me.
The nurses and the hospital both announced a tentative deal that will avert a planned Monday strike and lockout after several hours of negotiations yesterday.
Massachusetts Nurses Association statement.
Brigham and Women's statement.
The Globe reports OSHA has fined Cambridge Brands Inc., which makes Tootsie Rolls, $46,000 for several violations uncovered after a temporary worker had a fingertip sliced off by a machine that wraps the candies.
Kanye Wes shows us a Commonwealth Avenue shut down by Boston University students supporting a bid by adjunct professors for higher pay, better working conditions.
Casey Liston looks down from her office at 100 Cambridge St. at Verizon workers, now on strike.
A new study by the BRA does little to dispel the idea that Boston is increasingly becoming a place for the very rich and the very poor. Boston's Workforce finds: Read more.
Gwen Betts asks:
Best coffee shop/cafe in downtown Boston to work remotely with decent wi-fi?
State Police report protesters demanding a $15 minimum wage at Logan Airport were allowed to protest and listen to a few speeches, then, when told to disperse, six refused and were arrested.
Those arrested on a trespassing charge: Michael G. Gallagher, 67, of Boston, Marvin A. Martin, 61, of Dorchester, Mary D. Lombos, 41, of Roxbury, Jacqueline Wesley, 51, of Roxbury, Yusuf Farah, 57, of Cambridge and Roxana L. Rivera, 46, of Warwick, RI.
Innocent, etc.
Aviva Chomsky discusses what happened to Globe deliverers in the Lynn area when the paper switched distribution companies: The new company ditched accident insurance, forced the deliverers it did take on to handle longer routes and decreased the per-paper fee they got. Also:
At the old distribution center in Lynn, they folded and bagged their papers inside the facility, with plenty of light, tables, and access to bathrooms. In Woburn, they are forced to do it outdoors in the icy darkness, or awkwardly inside their cars.
Beth Gavin captured protesters demanding a $15 minimum hourly wage outside the Old State House this evening.
Outbound trolley halted by protesters.
About 50 Northeastern students protesting in support of higher wages for both adjunct professors and people who make the minimum wage blocked the E Line at Forsyth Street for several speeches and chants this afternoon. Read more.
Ayr Muir, founder of Clover Food Lab, says it's been bothering him that some of his full-time workers don't make enough to live on in Boston. So he writes today he's going to experiment with gradual price increases over the next couple of years to get all of his workers up to at least $20 an hour.
I think we can't build a long-term sustainable food system without changing our labor practices. I think we can do this, but I need your help. We ask a lot of our customers, we want to know what we can do better, we want to know what you think of new menu items. We even ask you for recipes and ideas for the next sandwich. We ask you to tell everybody you know about Clover. Now I want to ask you to help us pay more. ...
City Councilor Nadeem Mazen is sponsoring a petition to set a $15 minimum wage in Cambridge.
This minimum wage is fair and reflective of the cost of living within Cambridge. It will would provide enough income for a full-time worker to meet all of the typical expenses of living in this city of ours.
The City Council today approved a hearing on conditions for housekeepers at the Wyndham Hotel on Blossom Street, whom they said are routinely exposed to blood, feces, vomit, syringes and other possibly unhealthy materials left in rooms by Mass. General patients staying at the hotel. Read more.
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