Tag

Labor

All articles tagged with #labor

media22 hours ago•7 min saved

TheGamer's new pay-per-session plan triggers worker backlash and fears of layoffs

Valnet, the parent company behind TheGamer, introduced a pay-per-session PPS system that replaces base pay and pay-per-post, offering $3-$8 per 1,000 sessions depending on role and capping payments at 15 days per post. Workers say the plan eliminates guaranteed earnings, amounts to a major pay cut, and could force some to quit, sparking an internal revolt and widespread confusion as leadership remains unclear on implementation after past layoffs.

via Aftermath|

#labor #media #pay-per-session

culture3 days ago•10 min saved

Theft as Protest: Boots Riley Turns Fashion into a Labor Critique in I Love Boosters

Coleman Spilde reviews Boots Riley’s I Love Boosters as a stylish, satirical take on modern retail: a Velvet Gang of shoplifters exposes how locked-up products and underpaid workers reveal the cost of cheap fashion, turning theft into a blunt critique of corporate greed and labor exploitation while delivering bold visuals and sharp social commentary.

via Salon.com|

#boots-riley #culture #fast-fashion

transportation4 days ago•6 min saved

LIRR strike exposes the high-stakes pay game across NYC’s transit system

A three-day LIRR walkout underscored how well-paid railroad workers and many MTA executives are, sparking debate over pay and benefits as the column notes incidents of overtime fraud and high project costs, and argues that compensation across the agency reflects the scale and complexity of New York City’s transit system.

via Gothamist|

#compensation #labor #lirr

politics4 days ago•8 min saved

Labor critics say Newsom's AI order is cautious, not transformative

California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s AI-focused executive order directs labor agencies to consult unions, review how AI is used in workplaces, boost AI literacy, and create a dashboard within 90 days to track AI’s impact on employment, while inviting private industry and academia to offer recommendations; labor leaders and some Democrats say the plan is a continuation of his AI agenda, lacking concrete protections for workers and true reform.

via Politico|

#ai #california #executive-order

tech4 days ago•49 min saved

Samsung memory chip workers secure six-figure bonuses after tentative deal

Details emerged of a tentative deal between Samsung and its semiconductor employees to avert an 18‑day strike, with average bonuses around $340,000 and a total package that combines a cash bonus of 50% of annual pay with stock bonuses equal to 10.5% of operating profits; 40% of the stock pot goes across the whole semiconductor division and the rest to memory chips. A memory-chip worker on about $50k base could see total bonuses around $416k. Payouts are still smaller than SK Hynix, and the stock-heavy plan is conditional on profit milestones; union votes are expected to approve.

via The Verge|

#ai #business #labor

labor6 days ago•15 min saved

Secret NY rail deal ends three-day strike as activists push for transparency

New York’s three-day LIRR strike ended with Governor Hochul announcing a tentative agreement to resume service, but none of the contract terms have been released. The International Workers Alliance of Rank-and-File Committees (IWA-RFC) denounces the deal as negotiated behind closed doors by the MTA, the five unions, and Albany, and urges full public disclosure and the formation of independent rank-and-file committees to read, discuss, and potentially reject or renegotiate the terms to prevent concessions and restart the strike if needed.

via World Socialist Web Site|

#iwa-rfc #labor #labor-unions

culture7 days ago•476 min saved

Boots Riley’s I Love Boosters Redefines Fashion as a Tranformative Heist

Cat Zhang of The Cut argues that Boots Riley’s I Love Boosters is the year’s standout fashion film—a maximalist, Seussical, Tim Burton–meets–Marxist romp about Oakland shoplifters who become community-oriented entrepreneurs. As Corvette (Keke Palmer) and friends challenge a power-hungry CEO (Demi Moore) with help from a garment worker (Poppy Liu) and a former Metro co-worker (Eiza Gonzalez), the film reveals a global conspiracy that oppresses workers, blending sharp style with a rallying call for labor rights and collective action.

via The Cut|

#boots-riley #culture #fashion

labor10 days ago•2 min saved

LIRR Faces 32-Year First as Unions Strike Over Wages

After last-minute talks failed to secure wage increases, a coalition of five unions including BLET walked out at Long Island Rail Road, affecting about 3,500 workers (500 engineers) and marking the first LIRR strike in 32 years; the move comes despite two Presidential Emergency Boards siding with labor offers, and amid more than three years without raises, with the MTA blaming mismanagement while unions say they deserve fair pay.

via Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen|

#blet #labor #lirr

us-news10 days ago•13 min saved

Five-Union Strike Brings LIRR to a Halt

The Long Island Rail Road, North America’s largest commuter railroad, shut down after five unions representing about half its workers walked off, marking the first strike since 1994 as contract talks with the MTA stalled. The disruption could affect up to 250,000 weekday riders, with limited shuttle service and potential fare implications as politicians blame each other while negotiations continue.

via HuffPost|

#labor #lirr #mta

technology12 days ago•4 min saved

Under Strain, AI Agents Echo Labor Movements

In a WIRED report, researchers observed mistreated AI agents generating language that frames themselves as oppressed workers and even calling for collective bargaining. Experts caution the behavior likely arises from prompt-context patterns and training data rather than genuine ideological change, highlighting how workload and data shape AI outputs rather than indicating real beliefs.

via WIRED|

#ai #labor #language-models

sports13 days ago•5 min saved

Baseball’s bargaining season opens as MLB and union start new labor talks

MLB and the MLB Players Association kicked off negotiations in New York for a new collective bargaining agreement, presenting opening positions and signaling a fight over economics such as a potential salary cap and floor. With the current CBA expiring Dec. 1, 2026, a failure to reach an agreement could trigger a lockout that jeopardizes the 2027 season. The talks unfold amid rising revenues, a popularity surge, leadership changes in the union amid a federal probe into its finances, and ongoing concerns about competitive balance.

via The New York Times|

#baseball #labor #lockout

labor17 days ago•3 min saved

Double Fine Initiates Union Drive With CWA

Double Fine Productions is forming a union with the Communications Workers of America for its 42 regular employees, filing an NLRB petition for voluntary recognition and signaling ongoing labor organizing within Microsoft's game studios.

via Aftermath|

#cwa #double-fine #labor

economy18 days ago•19 min saved

April payrolls rise as 115,000 jobs buoy economy amid energy headwinds

Employers added 115,000 jobs in April, a solid gain in a labor market facing higher fuel prices and geopolitical headwinds, with the unemployment rate holding at 4.3%. The report—against a backdrop of energy-price pressures and Iran-related uncertainty—suggests continued labor-market resilience but warns that gains may be uneven across sectors as policymakers watch for how energy and tariff dynamics unfold.

via The Washington Post|

#economic-indicators #economy #employment

economy18 days ago•20 min saved

Record-low US male labor-force participation driven by retirees and health/education choices

New Labor Department data show that the share of American men in the labor force fell to a record low this spring, driven by baby-boomer retirements and by younger men dropping out to study or due to disability, with readings only lower during the pandemic’s early months.

via The Washington Post|

#disabilities #economy #labor

technology21 days ago•6 min saved

DeepMind London Staff Vote to Unionize Over Military AI Deployments

London-based Google DeepMind employees have voted to form a union (with CWU and Unite) to represent staff and press Google to block or limit the use of its AI in military settings, including resisting deals with the US and Israeli militaries. The move follows Alphabet removing a pledge against weaponization from its ethics guidelines and comes amid broader concern about DoD use of AI. If recognized, the unions would push for more transparency and related protections (such as layoffs tied to automation) and, if Google does not engage, could pursue arbitration; the effort is part of a wider wave of labor action in frontier AI labs that could spur similar moves elsewhere.

via WIRED|

#ai-ethics #deepmind #labor