With more tariffs and uncertainty looming, the last thing anyone wants is to feel insecure at work. But as this week’s writers show, some bad actors are using workarounds to poke holes in federal labor law.
Lena Simet, for example, reports on how app-based employers like Uber, Lyft, and so on classify their employees as “independent contractors” despite controlling every aspect of their work — all to get around minimum wage laws, taxes, and other rules responsible employers follow. “This isn’t about rejecting technology. It’s about making sure companies don’t hide exploitation behind an app,” she concludes.
Meanwhile A.J. Schumann explains how certain religious employers — think Catholic schools, hospitals, and charities, among others — are trying to claim religious exemptions to basic anti-discrimination laws and collective bargaining rules. That risks “creating a two-tiered system of worker protections: one set of rights for people working for secular employers, and another — far weaker — set of rights for those working in religious settings,” he warns.
Finally, LaToya Parker and Dedrick Asante-Muhammad warn that Congressional Republicans’ benefit cuts for federal workers will especially harm Black families — all to finance more tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans.
New This Week…
Hiding Exploitation Behind an App | Lena Simet
After expenses, workers for companies like Uber often make well below the federal minimum wage. But many are now fighting back.
This Federal Budget Will Be a Disaster for Black Workers | LaToya B. Parker and Dedrick Asante-Muhammad
The GOP reconciliation bill will widen the racial wealth divide — all to make wealthy heirs richer.
When Religious Employers Get a Pass, Workers Pay the Price | A.J. Schumann
Increasingly, religious employers are claiming “religious liberty” to deny workers basic protections. That’s exploiting religion, not practicing it.
In Case You Missed It…
Six Ways Trump’s Budget Will Hurt Rural America | Michael Chameides
Republicans in Congress are jamming through a sweeping bill to fund handouts to the rich — at the cost of jobs, health care, and food in rural America.
The Country Trump Seems Dead Set on Imitating | Sonali Kolhatkar
The police state of my birth is a nightmare for workers and a paradise for the ultra-wealthy. Is it any wonder Trump’s been heaping praise on it?
The Senate Shouldn’t Confirm a Single Trump Judge | Paul Gordon
As long as Trump blows off court rulings and threatens judges, the Senate shouldn’t be confirming any nominees he puts forward.
Public Transit Is In Crisis. Congress Can Fix It. | LeeAnn Hall
Public transit across the country is in trouble. Fixing that starts with investing in it, not defunding it.
