Construction workers on the job in Mountain View. (Photo: Sundry Photography, via Shutterstock)OPINION: For many, Labor Day means a day off work and one last summer BBQ. But without a strong labor movement, our country wouldn’t have weekends at all, let alone long ones. Unfortunately, union membership has fallen by half over the last 40 years, often as a result of state “right to work” laws.
An app-user types out an order on his hand-held device. (Photo: Billion Photos, via Shutterstock)OPINION: The economic devastation of the pandemic is well-chronicled. At its peak, more than two million Californians lost their jobs. In the wake of such devastation, a recent report found that app-based rideshare and food delivery platforms helped provide earnings for displaced or struggling workers, and helped keep many restaurants and retailers afloat.
Illustration of a talent agent's files. (Image: Olivier Le Moal, via Shutterstock)OPINION:Every day, California’s contractors negotiate written and oral contracts for clients and other third parties. So do art dealers, retail store clerks, car brokers, insurance, real estate and talent agents, auctioneers, architects and others. If the state Supreme Court refuses review on a recently published 2nd District Court of Appeals decision, any of those transactions done without an attorney signing off on the terms will be unlawful.
Cash register workers and their customers in area in a South San Francisco store. (Photo: Sundry Photography, via Shutterstock)The California Employment Development Department recently issued its monthly employment report showing unemployment held steady at 8.3 percent in April as the state’s employers added 101,800 jobs. EDD also trumpeted that California regained almost 48 percent of the 2,714,800 total nonfarm jobs lost in March and April 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
A river in Kings Canyon National Park, California. (Photo: Owen Sholes, via Shutterstock)OPINION: Over the last year, Californians have turned to neighborhood parks, trails, and beaches for respite and healing more than ever before. Some of us have grown to appreciate the park down the street or have developed a favorite walking route through tree-lined neighborhoods.
The setting for a book-signing event at a Calabasas bookstore, just before the pandemic hit. (Photo: Jesse Watrous, via Shutterstock)On Tuesday March 17, the nation’s first effective coronavirus shelter-in-place order took effect in California. At midnight, non-essential businesses in six San Francisco Bay Area counties – from salons to bookstores – closed. As Pete Mulvihill, co-owner of Green Apple Books, told KQED about the order, “We haven’t closed since the 1989 earthquake and that was only one day.”
Materials for preparing for the SATs on a shelf at a Laguna Niguel book store. (Photo: David Tonelson, via Shutterstock)OPINION:As a proud first-generation American, I have a deep personal connection to the one thing that helps create opportunities for people from all backgrounds: education. When my parents immigrated to the U.S. from Colombia with limited financial resources, they understood the power that education has to change lives. Yet, the doors to my future were only truly opened when I took the PSAT/NMSQT, which helps students prepare for the SAT, qualifies them for National Merit Scholarships, and is connected with hundreds of colleges and many scholarship opportunities
Stem cells for treating cancer in microtubes. (Image: Science Photo, via Shutterstock)Backers of the financially stressed California stem cell agency yesterday filed their proposed ballot measure to refinance the agency with $5.5 billion if voters approve it in November 2020. The complex, 30-page initiative would also restructure a number of aspects of the agency and provide for financial assistance for patients and their families who might be involved in clinical trials.
A section of the Rubicon Trail at D.L. Bliss State Park in South Lake Tahoe. (Photo: AJ9, via Shutterstock)OPINION: It’s time to shift the conversation around parks in California. New data is illuminating the need to look at state parks in communities a bit differently. Rather than measuring their value by their undeniable beauty, new research illustrates a clear opportunity to measure parks by their impact on our public health and communities.
High school students taking a test. (Photo: LStockStudio, via Shutterstock)OPINION: Twenty-four states will use the SAT and/or ACT this school year for state assessments and accountability. California students deserve the same opportunity to take these assessments for free at their schools and reap the benefit of increased access to higher education.