Workers

Newsworthy News - Millions of working Americans face losing their health coverage under new federal rules that penalize the poor for failing to navigate bureaucratic paperwork, not for refusing to work.

• Federal law mandates 80 hours monthly of work or approved activities for Medicaid recipients starting January 2027, threatening 5.2 million with coverage loss
• Middle-aged workers over 50 face disproportionate impact despite 92% of enrollees already meeting activity requirements
• States must implement complex verification systems while some like Arizona propose even stricter 100-hour monthly requirements
• Policy experts warn administrative burdens will cause coverage losses among compliant workers unable to document their activities properly

The Guardian - Workers at the historic first Starbucks store are seeking to unionize as the coffee retail giant and its union appear stalemated over their first contract.  The first Starbucks store opened in 1971 in Seattle’s Pike Place Market, and the store serves as a tourist site in Seattle.

Nailah Diaz, a Starbucks barista for about five years, three of those at Pike Place, said the Pike Place store can often have lines out the door, with waits up to two hours for tourists to come inside and look around....

“I myself have experienced unfair treatment, favoritism, discrimination and harassment with little to no support from management, and for me, joining this fight is me making sure that no one else has to go through what I have,” said Diaz. “We feel personally empowered by each other’s courage, the encouragement of our fellow union baristas and honestly, the unwavering support from our Pike Place Market community.”