Month: April 2018

It’s been a long-term dream of mine to use a gif from The Wire in HtU…

 

Original Content
Earlier in the month, I talked to David Unger about his work to educate high school students in New York about their rights at work.
Thanks to all our supporters who keep this site going. If you like the original content on this site, please kick in a small contribution ($2/mo?) to help us keep it up and running.
Geeking Out
Robots assemble an Ikea chair. One wonders how much whiskey was consumed.
Sharing, Solidarity & Sustainability
Taxi coops are much better for drivers than platforms like Uber & Lyft.
Survey Monkey just decided to offer benefits to their subcontractors—including health insurance, time off & transportation.

 

What’s Going on in the Workforce
Long, but interesting read about the perils of crab fishing in Alaska.
British reporter goes undercover in an Amazon warehouse, discovers bottle filled with urine, as workers don’t feel they have time to go to the bathroom.
The push for a 28-hour workweek continues in Germany, spreading to other unions beyond IG Metall.
Is Uber luring people away from restaurant jobs (I guess the tipped minimum wage isn’t too hard to overcome)?

 

Reputation, reputation, reputation
Women, we need to get involved in AI, before it’s full of male-programmed bias.

 

Robot of the Week
Because what’s better than Alexa creepily & inexplicably laughing in your house? Well, what if Alexa could follow you around while doing so?

“…the American Chopper meme has altered the way my brain works…”

Organizing Theory
“Preferential” memes like the American Chopper can certainly be used by campaigns and organizers—how have they taken over certain subsets of the internet?
When you’re working with humans, you are invariably dealing with some kind of trauma. Is your organization thinking about how staff might be triggered?

 

Sharing, Solidarity & Sustainability
Crowdfunding to deal with housing and health care emergencies can reinforce privilege bias, as people with digital and story-telling skills tend to do better at it.
Reputation, reputation, reputation
After watching the Facebook Senate hearings, Cathy O’Neil is proposing a Data Bill of Rights.
From Partners
The National Bail Out collective has released a toolkit to teach organizations how to set up a bail fund—and support the recently bailed-out—in cities across the US. https://nomoremoneybail.org/#top
Geeking Out
Want to learn more about using encrypted messaging systems to protect your organizing? Check out this piece.

 

What’s Going on in the Workforce
Uber says they worked with drivers to redesign the driver side of the app, which rolled out in two cities last week.
A Danish union has signed the first-ever collective bargaining agreement with a platform company, including a guarantee of a minimum payment of 19 euros per hour (about $23.41).
The San Francisco Federal Reserve just did a study that shows companies’ reliance on part-time and temporary labor is not receding, post-recession.
Events
The 2018 Worker Cooperative National Conference will be held on Sept. 14-16 in LA.
Opportunity Agenda is having a webinar on developing Future over Fear narratives.

“…passengers who tip nearly always converse…”

What’s Going on in the Workforce
This Lyft driver analyzed 50 rides, to see if he could discover any common threads around tipping. “The conclusion: passengers who tip nearly always converse, but it isn’t necessarily the case that all passengers who converse are those who tip.”
Sharing, Solidarity & Sustainability
Tightshift Laboring Cooperative (which was founded by returning citizens) is looking for financial help to meet their goal of buying a new truck & moving insurance. Watch their video, and kick in a couple of bucks.
Los Angeles is trying to ameliorate its housing crisis by seeing if they can make it easier for homeowners to build an in-law apartment in their back yard.
Paypal wants to expand its business to appeal to the unbanked, as well.
Shout out to all my friends who are organizing actions against Amazon HQ2 coming to their communities, this week and beyond.

All week she’s cleaned someone else’s house, stared down her own face in the shine of copper– bottomed pots, polished wood…

 

Original Content
Last week, I got a chance to talk to Australian labor activist Tim Lyons, about his recent paper.
Thanks to all our supporters who keep this site going. If you like the original content on this site, please kick in a small contribution ($2/mo?) to help us keep it up and running.
Reputation, reputation, reputation
It’s hard to manage your reputation online, in the gig economy, especially for domestic workers who may face sexual harassment at work.

 

Geeking Out
How I learned to stop worrying and love automation? Two words. Cake Bot.
What’s Going on in the Workforce
It’s been a while since we’ve had an article about manufacturing via 3D printing—so here’s one that should make you a tiny bit worried, if you’re involved in heavy manufacturing via the aviation industry.
In an interesting (and some might say, out of character) twist, Amazon has decided to directly hire housecleaners as employees, instead of independent contractors, for their marketplace app in Seattle.
Uber is not renewing their permit to test self-driving cars in California.  They’re also shutting down their delivery service, Uber Rush, in June.
Sharing, Solidarity & Sustainability
Waymo announced last week that, as of 2020, they’ll have the capacity for a million driverless trips per day. Alexis Madrigal has some thoughts about what we should consider BEFORE that happens.
In an interesting mashup of Strike Debt and performance art, these London artists are creating fake money to sell for real money to buy real people’s debt and then forgive it.
Interesting interview with two of the leaders of Cooperation Richmond, which is looking to promote sustainable, worker-owned businesses in Richmond, CA.