Does President Biden have the political juice to make paid family and medical leave a reality?

For the past couple of administrations, it's a presidential rite of passage—unveiling a plan to provide paid family and medical leave to American workers. Last Wednesday night, President Biden released his proposal as part of his $1.8 trillion American Families Plan.

Coronavirus Update 4-30-2021: Today in pro se lawsuit insanity

Masks remain a key line that divides our country. The CDC just announced that the fully vaccinated safely can go maskless in small gatherings outdoors. Meanwhile, Tucker Carlson is telling his viewers to call the police when they see a child wearing a mask; the charge—child abuse.

And then there's this bonkers lawsuit—the CEO of Costco is being sued for $350 million for implementing a mandatory mask rule in his stores. The plaintiff claims an infringement of his constitutional right to go maskless in public.

The 8th nominee for the “Worst Employer of 2021” is … the vaccine vetoer

In a stunning show of ignorance, a Miami, Florida, private school has informed its staff that because the Covid-19 vaccine poses a health risk to those in close proximity to those who have been vaccinated, those who have already received the vaccine must physically distance from students and anyone vaccinated will not be permitted to return to work after the summer break. 

Biden Administration announces $15 minimum wage for all federal contractors

Yesterday, the White House announced that effective January 30, 2022, all federal contractors will be required to incorporate a $15 minimum wage in new contract solicitations, and by March 30, 2022, all federal agencies will need to implement the minimum wage into new contracts and into existing contracts with annual options to renew.

The Executive Order that implements these changes will also tie this new minimum wage to inflation and adjust accordingly annually, eliminate the tipped minimum wage for federal contractors by 2024, and extends the required $15 minimum wage to federal contract workers with disabilities.

Why would a company wait a year to implement an anti-harassment program?

McDonald's has lots of secrets. What's in its sauce? What part of the chicken do the McNuggets come from? How come every time I crave a cone the soft-serve machine is out of order? Why do their soft drinks taste better than anyone else's?

Something that's not a secret, however, is that McDonald's has a serious sexual harassment problem.

Coronavirus Update 4-26-2021: Another reason not to mandate the Covid vaccine for employees

I've not hidden my belief that employers should not be mandating that their employees receive the Covid vaccine as a condition of employment. Now, OSHA offers yet another reason why employers should recommend, but not mandate, the vaccine.

Per OSHA, if the vaccine is mandatory, then an employer must record an employee's adverse reaction or side effects on its OSHA log.

Coronavirus Update 4-22-2021: The SBA has one pandemic job, and it failed @nivassoc #saveourstages

On April 8, the Small Business Association opened its Covid relief program for concert halls and other performing arts venues. Or at least it was supposed to.

This $16 billion Shuttered Venue Operators Grant program—part of the $900 billion rescue package Congress approved nearly four months ago—is supposed to offer grants equal to 45% of a venue's gross earned revenue up to $10 million per business. The SBA had to immediately close its SVOG portal when crashed from the volume of applications. As of last Friday, the SBA said that it was still working to test the portal's functionality and that it was hoping to reopen it by the end of this week.

This failure is completely and utterly unacceptable.