Blog

Catching Up: Youth unemployment and pension policy

I discovered I’d forgotten to post this column from a couple of weeks ago that examines youth unemployment. In the last decade, the share of employed youth has fallen dramatically and it continues to drop. Nationally, the youth unemployment rate for those aged 16 to 19 years old is about 22 percent. In Washington, that number […]

Labor regulations and unintended consequences

There has been a lot of comment over the past month or so about the scheduling issues faced by part-time workers. Steven Greenhouse wrote in the New York Times: As more workers find their lives upended and their paychecks reduced by ever-changing, on-call schedules, government officials are trying to put limits on the harshest of […]

State budget is the winner in public pension cases, as WA Supreme Court holds that gain sharing and UCOLAs may be repealed

This morning, reversing lower court rulings, the state Supreme Court held that the Legislature was within its rights to repeal the uniform cost-of-living adjustment (UCOLA) and gain-sharing programs for public employees. By doing so, the court has finally given budget writers some good news: The state actuary had estimated that if the UCOLA and gain […]

Ferry replacement troubles provide insight on local hire ordinances

Two Seattle stories from yesterday are a telling juxtaposition. First, in the Stranger, “Should Seattle Require Local Workers on Its Construction Projects?” and second, at KUOW, “Why Washington Ferries Are Such A Headache To Replace.” As the Stranger reports, For more than a year, the city has been studying a potential “local hire” ordinance, which […]

Various and sundry links

“Cancelling Washington R&D Incentives Will Erase Success,” by Tom Ranken and Eric Viola of the Washington Clean Technology Alliance, in Xconomy: “Before the programs, Washington tax law was punitive to R&D growth—and the job growth that goes with it.” (Here’s our policy brief on the R&D incentives: “Supporting Research and Development with Responsible Tax Policy.”) […]

More on the NLRB's joint employer standard

Insurance Journal has a good article on the legal issues surrounding the NLRB’s general counsel’s decision that McDonald’s can be considered a joint employer in complaints against franchisees. If the five-member, Democrat-controlled NLRB board agrees with Griffin, the agency’s top prosecutor, corporations that may be far removed from day-to-day personnel decisions made by franchisees and […]

NLRB rules that McDonald's is a joint employer with franchisees

Earlier this month, I wrote about the National Labor Relations Board’s impending decision on whether or not to treat McDonald’s as a joint employer in unfair labor practices complaints against franchisees. Today, according to the New York Times, the NLRB’s general counsel ruled that McDonald’s is the joint employer for workers at its franchisees’ restaurants, […]

Workers earn more at larger retailers

A new NBER working paper finds that “the growth in modern retail, characterized by larger chains of larger establishments with more levels of hierarchy, is raising wage rates relative to traditional mom-and-pop retail stores.” According to the paper, not only do “Wage rates in the retail sector rise markedly with firm size and with establishment […]

Port of Seattle increases compensation for certain airport workers

In 2013, SeaTac approved a $15 minimum wage (and other employment policies) for certain hospitality, transportation, and airport workers. Subsequently, a King County Superior Court judge “ruled that the city of SeaTac does not have the authority to set workplace rules within Seattle-Tacoma International Airport because the aviation hub is owned by the Port of […]

Some businesses pay more than the minimum wage — should they all?

The New York Times has a story about a few fast food restaurants that pay their workers above the minimum wage. Higher compensation means these restaurants can better compete for the best workers: Scott Newman, the restaurant’s manager, said that Boloco’s above-average pay enabled him to pick from among many talented job applicants, adding, “When […]