Category Archives: National

BIPOC, Editorial, Local, National

One year later, what has changed after Black Lives Matter protests swept Seattle

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[SEATTLE] – (MTN) A year has passed since George Floyd protests ended in clouds of teargas, police cruisers set on fire, and downtown stores looted. Caught in the crossfire were thousands of peaceful protesters who were out to show solidarity with the family of George Floyd. Protests erupted across the United States after 8 minutes and 46 seconds of a video showed George Floyd under the knee of Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin. Floyd would die, Chauvin was convicted for his murder, and the nation was forced into a racial reckoning.

In the year that has followed, the city of Seattle watched as Carmen Best resigned as Chief of Police and 200 officers left the force due to efforts to defund and improve oversight. Mayor Jenny Durkan did not seek reelection among growing calls for her resignation. Over 285 protesters were arrested during months of unrest, and many have ultimately never been charged by prosecutors. King County Executive Dow Constantine announced the construction of a new youth jail would stop.

recap of events in Seattle on may 30, 2020 from malcontent news

Aubreanna Inda was shot at near point-blank range by a stun grenade on June 7 had her heart stop three times at Harborview Medical Center. Diaz Love and Summer Taylor were struck by an SUV driven by Dawit Kelete on July 4, killing Taylor and gravely injuring Love. Kelete is awaiting trial on multiple charges.

The protesters had five demands in the summer of 2020, and many questions remain unanswered a year later.

Defund SPD how much? Fifty percent, at least.

The first demand of protesters was to defund the Seattle Police Department by at least 50%. While the term “defund” creates an image of half the police force being removed, advocates for defunding don’t have that expectation.

In Seattle, only 1.3% of 911 calls are for violent or major crimes. The remaining 98.7% are for property crimes, auto accidents, or petty situations such as neighbors arguing over parking spots. Despite this disparity, equally armed officers go to these calls, and 40% of sworn officers in Seattle received at least one complaint to the OPA in 2020, resulting in 145 open cases.

The Seattle Police Department was defunded just under 18% in November 2020 after political theater. The city council approved an earlier budget that called for defunding in August 2020 that Mayor Durkan vetoed – a veto overridden by the council.

Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best resigned, stating that she didn’t want to fire officers as part of budget cuts. Adrian Diaz was named Acting Chief and remains in charge today. 

Before June 2020, the Seattle Police Department was already losing officers. Since January 2020, 260 cops have resigned or gone on extended leave. The force has a budget to support up to 1,325 officers, and currently, 1,080 patrols the streets. Compared to other similar-sized west coast cities, even at 1,080 officers, staffing is at a comparable level.

As protests evolved through the fall of 2020, more demanded the abolishment of SPD. Abolishment falls into two camps – the ending of the Seattle Police Department as it is known today and a total replacement with a much smaller force focusing on community support. Others view abolishment as the ending of the police, courts, and prisons. For the most radical, when asked what would happen to those accused of violent crimes such as rape or murder, some say they support summary execution.

Where should that money go? To Black communities.

The budget cuts of approximately $80 million were partially created by moving numbers on balance sheets with certain functions removed from the department but still fully funded.

Budget Chair Teresa Mosqueda called in a win stating, “This council has stepped up in the midst of a historic crisis.” Other members of the City Council were critical for various reasons.

Of the $80 million in cuts, $12 million went to a “people’s fund” where the citizens of Seattle would have a voice on how to spend the money. The city had touted a $100 million investment program to support BIPOC peoples and communities before last year’s protests, but the city didn’t spend a single penny. That money sat trapped in review processes and red tape, with applicants advised to submit proposals subject to review and studies. The new “people’s fund” is the 2021 budget totals $35 million.

Seattle Fire Department now has two units called Health One. Health One responds to mental health calls and provides an alternative to police response. Health One mirrors programs like STAR in Denver, Colorado, which started earlier in 2020. Six months after implementing STAR in Denver, the responding units have never had to request police intervention. 

What should the city do? Free all the protesters.

Over 285 people were arrested during protest actions in the summer of 2020 for a range of crimes from pedestrian obstruction to arson and first-degree assault. According to the City Attorney’s Office, most of those arrested have not been criminally charged and likely never will be.

City Attorney’s and the Seattle Police Department got into frequent, and at times public, war of words over the handling of arrests. Seattle Police complained that protesters were being caught and released. In contrast, city prosecutors complained that SPD was not doing the necessary work to provide evidence to support arrests. 

Of the most serious arrests and criminal charges, many were not from Seattle. Some had only recently moved into the area.

Jacob D. Little of Everett was arrested for stealing firearms from the Seattle Police Department on May 30, including silencers and an M4 assault rifle. The weapons have not been recovered. Little was later charged with an unrelated shooting of a 15-year old in Renton.

Margaret Aislinn Channon was a woman from Texas who had been reported missing and had recently started living in Tacoma. She was arrested for her role in setting Seattle Police cruisers on fire along 6th Avenue on May 30.

Thomas Kelly Jackson of Edmonds, Washington, was arrested for arson. In that case, police used his cell phone records and surveillance video to place him at the scene.

Marcel Levon Long was identified as the person who shot and killed Lorenzo Anderson on June 20, 2020, on the edge of CHOP, the Capitol Hill Organized Protest. The shooting was determined to be gang-related and not involving protesters. Anderson’s family is suing the city in federal court for negligence and violating Anderson’s rights in his death. That lawsuit blew the lid off of a simmering scandal in City Hall, revealing months of texts have disappeared from Mayor Jenny Durkan, former Police Chief Carmen Best, and current Seattle Fire Chief Harold Scoggins. 

However, for every Little, Channon, Jackson, and Long, dozens were arrested for obstruction, trespass, and traffic violations. In other cases, suspects for the most severe crimes have never been identified.

In a gun battle, Antonio Mays Jr., 16, died in the early morning hours of June 29 in CHOP. Mays Jr. and an unnamed 14-year-old drove through street barricades and rammed the concrete blocks outside the East Precinct building in a stolen Jeep. A suspect has not been named in that case.

What do want for number four? No new youth jail.

King County had argued for a new youth jail facility for years. The current building in the Central District is crumbling with sanitary, heating, and water issues. In 2012 a levy measure was passed and was met with outrage by activists who sued the city in 2016, saying the ballot language was misleading.

In the nine years that have passed, public sentiment on youth incarceration and heightened awareness of the school-to-prison pipeline has shifted public opinion on the imprisonment of children. For a growing list of industrialized nations, the practice is no longer acceptable.

On July 24, 2020, King County Executive Dow Constantine vowed to end the incarceration of children at the Children and Family Justice Center by 2025. For protesters, the view is the demand has not been met, and they seek an immediate shutdown. The center is currently housing less than 40 people.

Don’t forget number five. Jenny Durkan to resign.

A year later, Mayor Jenny Durkan’s June 12 comment on CNN about “the summer of love” appears cavalier and cynical. 

By September of 2020, Ted Wheeler of Portland, Oregon, and Durkan of Seattle was in an unofficial competition of the least liked mayors in the United States. For Mayor Durkan, her allies were dwindling on all sides. Conservatives felt she was too soft on protesters, should have never allowed the creation of CHOP, and directly blamed her for the evacuation of the East Precinct. The business community felt abandoned by the city between protests, COVID restrictions, and a culture war with their customers over the support of the police. Liberals viewed her as being heavy-handed, ordering the teargassing and beatings of mostly peaceful protesters. They were frustrated with broken promises on concessions and offers of cooperation. Moderates who supporter her based on her prior federal experience found her response to 2020 incompetent.

By the late fall, a growing chorus of city groups and members of the city government were calling for Durkan’s resignation. On December 7, 2020, she announced she would not seek reelection. New calls for her resignation erupted in May of 2021 over her missing texts, but it appears she will ride out the final months as mayor of Seattle.

What is next

Although there have been changes, and the protesters achieved other victories beyond the five demands chanted in the streets in 2020, the foundations of Seattle’s historical past remain.

The City Council has almost no visibility into the details of the police budget, while the Seattle Police Officers Guild, the police union, enjoys one of the most one-sided contracts in the nation. 

As recently as May 29, 2021, the uneven policing in the city was on display. A small group of protesters was met with an aggressive response downtown during the day, while thousands challenged police authority on Alki Beach hours later. The Seattle Police Blotter was absent of any story about the events at Alki, which led to numerous arrests.

The foundational issues of systemic racism within Seattle and King County – zoning laws, infrastructure, schools, food and banking deserts – are entirely unchanged. In the aftermath of protests, the Seattle Office of Police Accountability has largely been impotent and incapable of enforcing police oversight by design.

At a broader level, the Washington state legislature passed several police accountability measures to provide more teeth to Washington I-940. Three Tacoma police officers were recently charged in the death of Manuel “Manny” Ellis, in a case eerily similar to George Floyd’s. Juneteenth will become a state holiday in 2022, and the Confederate monument in Lake View Cemetery was smashed on July 4, 2020.

In the end, what was accomplished a year later is entirely in the eye of the beholder.

You can watch our documentary Can You Hear Us? on our YouTube channel. Our documentary traces the events in Seattle from May 29 to July 4, 2020 that shaped the Black Lives Matter movement in the city.

BIPOC, Local, National

Documentary Can You Hear Us explores the events that happened during June 2020 in Seattle

[KIRKLAND] – (MTN) A new documentary, Can You Hear Us, which explores the story behind the Black Lives Matter protests from May 30 to July 4 in Seattle, will debut on Wednesday at 8 PM at Malcontent News TV. Producers combed through more than 200 hours of video, hundreds of still images, and dozens of news reports.

“The story of CHOP is forever ingrained in Seattle history,” explained David Obelcz, the producer. “We have been waiting to release our production in the hopes a BIPOC production would be released, but we have reached the one-year anniversary of the nation learning George Floyd’s name, and we believe this is the right time for release.”

“A striking thing to me is how many people are holding up cellphones and cameras in many of the scenes. The Black Lives Matter movement is the most documented social justice effort in United States history. There are likely hundreds, if not thousands of people who have history trapped on their phones, they’ve forgotten about.”

The documentary uses local and national news coverage video to enhance the story, and fill in gaps where access was limited to the mainstream media. It also includes a number of controversial figures, but Obelcz felt it was important to tell their stories also.

“Raz Simone was accused of sexual assault in January 2021, but to tell the story of CHOP and not include him isn’t committing to telling a complete story,” said Obelcz. “Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan and then President Donald Trump got into a war of words, and the politicization of what was happening is another part of the story.”

For Obelcz, the reasons for producing Can You Hear Us runs deeper than his passion for storytelling. “My daughter-in-law is Black, my grandchildren will be Black,” said Obelcz. “In 20 or 30 years, that could be my grandchild under a knee begging for their life.”

Can You Hear Us is not rated, but the producers did provide a content warning that the documentary shows scenes of protest, violence, and clips of George Floyd under the knee of convicted murderer and former Minneapolis police officer, Derek Chauvin. There is one clip the producers decided not to include. “We made the decision not to include the traffic camera video of Diaz Love and Summer Taylor being struck by a car in the early hours of July 4,” Obelcz said, with a pause. “It wasn’t an easy decision, but ultimately we wanted to respect Diaz Love and the estate of Summer Taylor, and chose a different path to tell their stories.”

Can You Hear us will air tonight at 8 PM, and will be generally available for free on May 27. “I’ve always been committed to not profiting off of Black misery,” said Obelcz, “we have no interest in selling our production and have relied on community donations to financially support us.”

Five Facts, Local, National

In 18 months, 20% of SPD officers have quit the force

Five Fast Facts

  • Acting Seattle Police Chief Adrian Diaz told CBS News 260 officers have left the force in the last 18 months
  • Seattle police officer Clayton Powell cited social justice protests and property destruction as his reason for early retirement stating, “we’re not allowed to intercede.”
  • Money cut from the 2021 police budget has still not been allocated to programs as they remain undefined
  • The Seattle City Council is considering another $5 million in cuts
  • Former police chief Carmen Best resigned to protest budget cuts to the force

SEATTLE, WA —

The Seattle Police Department is struggling under the backlash of recent police reforms. The state of Washington has just enacted a dozen police reform laws, following nearly a year of protests over police brutality.

According to one social justice group, more than $840 million were cut from U.S. police budgets in 2020.

Keep reading at CBS News

Local, National

New law requires Washington law enforcement to record interrogations

[OLYMPIA] – (MTN) Lawyer and criminal justice expert Laura Nirider and longtime criminal legal advocate Jason Flom join the chorus of those celebrating the passage of a new law today which will prevent wrongful convictions and protect the integrity of criminal cases. The new law, signed by Washington Governor Jay Inslee, requires law enforcement officers to electronically record custodial interrogations if the interrogation involves a juvenile or is related to a felony.

The new law, sponsored by Representative Strom Peterson (D — Edmonds), has been supported by Nirider, Flom, and a number of advocacy groups, including the Uniform Law commission and the Washington Innocence Project. Peterson was inspired to write the legislation after hearing an episode of Lava for Good Podcasts’ that tells the story of Henry McCollum and Leon Brown, two intellectually disabled half-brothers who were recently awarded $75 million by a North Carolina jury after spending decades behind bars for a crime they didn’t commit. 

With its signing, Washington joins 27 other states, Washington D.C., and federal agencies (including the FBI) in requiring the taping of suspect interviews. According to the National Registry of Exonerations, 12 people in Washington state alone have been wrongfully convicted after confessing to crimes they didn’t commit. 

“Twenty-nine percent of the people who have been proven innocent through DNA exonerations have confessed to crimes they didn’t commit,” said Nirider, a Clinical Professor of Law and co-director of the Center on Wrongful Convictions at Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law, as well as a host of the Wrongful Conviction: False Confessions podcast. “This legislation is a key step towards ending the epidemic of wrongful convictions that plagues our justice system.” 

Flom welcomed the law as a desperately needed change. “False confessions are a significant problem in our criminal legal system — and a common cause of wrongful convictions,” he said. “From juveniles to those with mental health issues, there are far too many who are highly susceptible to the coercive interrogation techniques often used to extract confessions. This legislation will provide an irrefutable record of what went on behind those closed doors. I extend a sincere thanks to Governor Inslee, Representative Peterson, and the other lawmakers who supported this bill.”

The legislation, which will go into effect on January 1, 2022.

BIPOC, Editorial, Health and Lifestyle, LGBTQIA, Local, National

Malcontentment Happy Hour: May 13, 2021

Video

Our live webcast from the former Seattle Anarchist Jurisdiction

The show from May 13, 2021, featured David Obelcz and our co-host Jennifer Smith. Patrons at the $5 and above level get access to our show notes and research documents.

  • Georgia Man busted after drilling holes in a U-Haul truck gas tank
  • Does Seattle have the 7th best BBQ in the United States?!?!
  • Acting Seattle Police Chief Adrian Diaz dismisses OPA use of force findings on June 1
  • Malcontented Minutes
    • Kentucky Derby Scandal deepens
    • Two Texas police officers shot and killed, one city worker wounded
    • Police hold press conference on the body of missing Indigenous found on Turtle Mountain
    • Black man beaten and robbed in Pennsylvania bar in racist incident
    • Government issues warning not to put gasoline in plastic bags
    • Florida woman arrested for pretending to be a high school student chasing Instagram clout
    • Levi’s is championing pronoun use
    • Evangelical Lutheran Church elects first openly transgender bishop
    • A mare and foal find comfort in shared grief
    • Two new mothers, one a gorilla, one human, bond at a Boston Zoo
  • Juneteenth law signed by Jay Inslee
  • COVID Update

Health and Lifestyle, Local, National

Trader Joe’s ends mask requirements in stores for fully vaccinated customers

[KIRKLAND] – (MTN) In an update on its corporate website, Trader Joe’s announced that fully vaccinated customers will no longer be required to wear masks in stores unless a local area guideline requires them. The grocery retailer, with 530 locations, is one of the first in the nation to officially adopt the policy in alignment with CDC guidelines on mask-wearing announced earlier this week.

“We encourage customers to follow the guidance of health officials, including, as appropriate, CDC guidelines that advise customers who are fully vaccinated are not required to wear masks while shopping,” the website said after it was updated on May 14.

Individuals who have been fully vaccinated no longer need to wear masks indoors or out, according to the CDC with certain exceptions. Masks are still required in situations such as using public transport, visiting a hospital or prison, living or working in a homeless shelter, or being in areas where people are densely congregated. On Thursday, Governor Jay Inslee announced that Washington state would adopt the CDC guidelines on mask-wearing. Businesses can set their own policies on mask-wearing and checking for proof of vaccination.

Trader Joe’s has locations in Kirkland, Bellevue, Redmond, and Sammamish, along with multiple locations in Seattle, and stores in Shoreline, Edmonds, and Everett in our local area.

Retailers, restaurants, bars, gyms, and other public businesses in King County are still in Phase 3 under the Safe Washington reopening program and can operate at 50% capacity. The Safe Washington reopening plan announced in March was essentially scraped by Gov. Inslee yesterday, with a new plan moving all counties to Phase 3 on May 18, and Washington state to full reopening on June 30.

The United States has administered over 250 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines nationwide. As of April 17, Washington state has administered more than 6 million doses, and over 43% of residents over 16-years old are fully vaccinated.

In King County, you can visit the Department of Health website to find a vaccination clinic, and many locations now support walk-up appointments. You can also visit the Facebook Group, Find a COVID Shot WA if you need language or technology assistance in making an appointment.

Local, National

No, you don’t need to panic buy gasoline or diesel fuel, and no one needed to either

[SEATTLE] – (MTN) Yesterday scattered reports came in through the Puget Sound region of longer than normal lines at some gas stations as news spread of shortages in several southeastern states. Overnight the national average for the price of gasoline broke $3.00 a gallon for the first time in 7 years, while scenes of hoarding gasoline into tubs, trashcans, and in one case a plastic bag flooded the Internet. Anyone worried about gasoline shortages in the Pacific Northwest can relax, and so can almost all Americans.

The Colonial Pipeline feeds 45% of the gas, diesel, and aviation fuel used on the east coast from Texas to the northeastern states. The line was crippled by a Russian ransomware attack on Friday, and pipeline managers had to shut down operations to keep the attack from spreading to other systems. Over the weekend it appeared that operations would resume by Tuesday, but then officials said it may not be until May 15, or longer. That’s when the panic buying started.

On the east coast, Asheville, North Carolina was one of the first cities to report gasoline station closings, and spot closures spread through mostly southeastern states. According to TTAC, only 7% of the gas stations in the southeast were reporting they had run out of fuel. Like toilet paper just a year ago, buyers rushed to gas stations to buy every last drop, filling every container, including unsafe ones, with the fuel.

The issue spiraled from the comical to the dystopian with fights breaking out at gas stations. In North Carolina, 2 people were arrested after a fight described as, “wild,” erupted after a woman tried to cut into a queue for gas, and then rammed a car.

The Pacific Northwest is nearly a closed-loop for vehicle and aviation fuel. The Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains create natural boundaries that make it challenging to ship crude and refined products to our region.

For oil tankers, the trip from the Middle East is a long journey to our corner of the country. The Rocky Mountains prevent large pipelines from reaching our region, so almost all of the crude oil that is turned into fuel for the Pacific Northwest comes from Alaska and is refined in Washington state. Because refineries have to be calibrated to accept certain crude oil products based on the viscosity and how sour it is, using Canada tar sand oil isn’t a viable alternative.

Because Washington and Oregon, and parts of Idaho and California, are in this isolated region our supply is unique and isolated from disruptions east of the Rockies. However, our region is not isolated from national price fluctuations. The Pacific Northwest bears the brunt of market price increases when national averages increase, even when our supply chain isn’t disrupted. There is additional price pressure with the Memorial Day weekend, and the start of driving season, less than 3 weeks away.

Earlier today, officials from Colonial Pipeline announced that fuel was once again flowing, days ahead of schedule. It will take several days for the fuel supply to stabilize, but the best thing consumers can do is not panic buy.

The Russian hacker group DarkSide claimed responsibility for the ransomware attack, but stated they were only interested in making money, and not committing an act of aggression. Russian officials distanced themselves from the group, citing they had no involvement in the hack, and that it was not state-sanctioned.

Over a 9 month period in 2020, the Russian government committed a series of cyberattacks on multiple United States government agencies in what is called the worst breach of government data security in history. Known as the SolarWinds attack, Russian agents used software vulnerabilities within SolarWinds, VMware, and Microsoft. The scope of the attack was revealed in December 2020.

BIPOC, Editorial, LGBTQIA, Local, National

Malcontentment Happy Hour: May 10, 2021

Video

Our live webcast from the former Seattle Anarchist Jurisdiction

The show from May 10, 2021, featured David Obelcz and our co-host Jennifer Smith. Patrons at the $5 and above level get access to our show notes and research documents.

  • Toyota campaign contribution story made our readers salty
  • Colonial Pipeline shutdown committed by Russian hackers
  • No one is talking about the AAHM raid done by the King County Sheriff
  • Franklin Graham coming to Bellevue and protests planned – controversy explained
  • Democracy vouchers explained
  • Jenny Durkan’s Textgate
  • Seattle Deputy Mayor Casey Sixkiller enters the 2021 mayor race
  • Angelyiah Lim wins the 2020 Lee Johnson Community Service Award

National

Wages and hiring on collision course as United States inches closer to ‘full employment’

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[KIRKLAND] – (MTN) Social media is abuzz with pictures of businesses closing because they can’t hire employees, entire workforces quitting and walking out, and talk of how extended unemployment benefits are keeping employees from returning to work. The economic reality is more complex and particularly problematic for the 5 states that continue to follow federal minimum wage guidelines, and the retail and hospitality industry have become employment and political flashpoints.

Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Tennessee, are the only states that have not passed state-level minimum wage laws. Even Florida has passed legislation that has put it on the path to a $15 an hour minimum wage. For tipped employees, base pay in those five states can be as low as $2.13 an hour, $85.20 for a 40 hour week, before federal payroll and state income tax. Three of these states are bumping up on ‘full employment.’

Full Employment

Some would consider full employment as 0% unemployment, but that has never happened in United States history. The lowest unemployment ever achieved was 1.2% in 1944, during the throes of World War II, millions of men overseas and a massive war effort. At any given point you will have discouraged workers, people between jobs, and others who are changing careers or entering the workforce after completing education.

As the number of people who are unemployed declines, you reach a point where employers need to offer higher salaries to compete. If you have too much productivity you create wage inflation, and a fraction of that is passed back to consumers. In the United States, the Congressional Budget Office considered full employment is achieved when the unemployment rate is 4.6%. Currently, the United States unemployment rate is 6.1% after a high of 14.7% in April 2020.

The states of Alabama, South Carolina, Tennessee, and 17 others, are already below or near full employment. In Louisiana and Mississippi, new unemployment claims have plummeted, and Louisiana already has a lower unemployment rate than March of 2020.

Bureau of Labor Statistics and U1 – U6 unemployment numbers

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is a federal organization that tracks unemployment in the United States. Each month they create a report that shows the U1 through U6 unemployment numbers, and each number is formulated by adding or removing different groups of people and their unemployment state. The number you see in the headlines is the U3.

U3 unemployment includes the “total unemployed” as a percentage of the civilian labor force. The U6 number in contrast includes, “Total unemployed, plus all persons marginally attached to the labor force, plus total employed part-time for economic reasons, as a percent of the civilian labor force, plus all persons marginally attached to the labor force.”

In April national unemployment increased from 6.0% to 6.1%, so what happened? Ironically, an improving economy and job market can move those not counted in the official unemployment number because they were discouraged or currently under-employed in part-time work. When people marginally attached to the labor force move to actively seeking jobs, it can create an increase in the official unemployment rate.

569,000 COVID deaths, 30% post-COVID infected with long-term symptoms

When COVID tore through the United States beginning in March of 2020, workers at fast-food restaurants, core retailers that provided groceries, home repair, and pharmacy needs, and workers in food processing were deemed, essential workers. In some industries such as food processing, these workers bore the brunt of COVID infections.

As the United States creeps towards 600,000 deaths from COVID, these losses impact the number of available workers in a post-COVID recovery. Additionally, up to 30% of people who have survived COVID, including asymptomatic carriers are dealing with long-term effects including chronic fatigue, mental decline, chronic joint pain, and heart damage. In other cases, able-bodied workers can’t return to the workforce because they are now caring for COVID long haulers.

Limited and expensive daycare

In the United States, it costs $11,400 on average to put a child in daycare for a year. For a worker making $7.25 an hour, their entire post-tax annual pay would go to care for one child.

Daycare centers in the United States were short-staffed before COVID, and the situation is more challenging today. Many school systems nationally are doing part-time in-class learning, further complicating when and how parents secure childcare. For some parents, the issue comes down to no available daycare compatible with a work schedule in retail and hospitality.

In retail and fast-food jobs, some workers are reporting working 12 to 14-hour shifts, which is incompatible with most daycare providers. In Idaho, childcare providers shut down en masse to protest budget cuts on the table in the Idaho legislature.

Long hours, irate customers, and understaffing

The hospitality industry is the hardest hit when it comes to open jobs they can’t fill. The worker shortage and competitive job market have created a vicious cycle.

Prior to COVID, retirees were among the ranks of part-time workers at fast food and casual dining restaurants. Chains like McDonald’s even actively recruit retirees as a way for them to stay active, engaged, and supplement retirement income. People over 55 disproportionately bore the brunt of COVID infections and deaths in 2020. Many older Americans are reluctant to rejoin the workforce due to vaccine hesitancy and patchwork mask rules.

Other employees have reported dangerous confrontations with anti-maskers, sometimes spiraling into violence between customers or customers assaulting employees. Frontline workers are attempting to enforce rules where they have no authority, and some customers view them as having to obey their will.

The stress of working with the public in an age lacking civility and being short-staffed has created longer waits, more errors in orders, and more anger among customers and employees. In a viral Tik Tok video, Chipotle employees complained about 12-hour shifts without breaks, being asked to violate employment and health laws to meet customer demand, and uncompensated hours.

Many businesses have moved to offer signing bonuses as high as $500 or even paying people to show up for an interview. However, these one-time payments don’t come for an overall salary boost, and workers have better prospects.

Education, gig economy, self-employment, and package delivery

For some, the return to the workforce isn’t going to happen because they have become job creators themselves. Facing unemployment and slow job prospects during the peak of COVID, some turned to career changes and formed their own businesses. In a report on WSVN, Dailys Gonzalez was a bookkeeper for years but lost her job due to COVID. Instead of looking to reenter the workforce, they formed their own painting business.

Amazon on its own created 400,000 jobs in logistics, shipping, and delivery in the first 9 months of 2020 as Americans flocked to online delivery and shopping. For others work from home or self-employment opportunities in customer service provided better pay, more flexibility, and a 25-foot commute from the bedroom to the kitchen table.

The tech community called 2020 the “great acceleration,” because changes in how, when, and where Americans would work moved faster than previously forecasted due to COVID. For some lower-wage workers, a return to the cash register or grille is never going to happen because they have found better opportunities that enable them not only to work but manage childcare while avoiding face-to-face confrontations with unreasonable customers.

Focusing on five states that follow federal minimum wage laws

Alabama has the biggest challenge in the country, with a state unemployment rate of 3.8%. Almost a full point below full employment and just 1.2 points higher than its record low in March of 2020. The southern state has a record number of unfilled jobs and a severe worker shortage. Business leaders claim that the federal unemployment boost is to blame, but the job market conditions in the Yellowhammer State point to increased wages will be needed to attract outside workers into the state.

Tennessee has an unemployment rate of 4.9%, close to full employment. There are no state-level minimum wage laws so tipped restaurant workers starting pay is as low as $2.13 an hour. Nationally, in-person restaurant dining is at 40% to 60% of pre-COVID levels, cutting into tips simply because of fewer customers. Overworked staff can’t provide a high degree of service, further cutting tips while increasing stress and workload.

If a restaurant is offering $2.13 an hour plus tips while an Amazon distribution center is offering $15 an hour for equally stressful and hard work with benefits, the hospitality industry is uncompetitive.

South Carolina is also close to full employment, with an unemployment rate of 5.1%.

Mississippi, which borders Alabama and Tennessee, has an unemployment rate of 6.3%. However, in March 2020, the unemployment rate was 6.0%, indicating that Mississippi has almost returned to pre-COVID employment levels. Further analysis shows that the unemployment rate in Mississippi was slowly climbing from a low of 4.8% since 2018.

Louisiana has the highest unemployment rate of the 5 states, at 7.1%. However, that rate is lower than the number of unemployed prior to COVID.

A further look at available state unemployment data, 18 states are at full employment, and not a single state has an unemployment rate above 10%. Hawaii has the worst unemployment in the nation at 9.0%, but the state is heavily tourism-dependent with travel down 60% and strict entry rules for the archipelago. Of the 10 states with the worst unemployment numbers, 4 had significant tourism prior to COVID including the aforementioned Hawaii plus, New York, Nevada, and Louisiana.

The employee shortage in the United States is more complex than extended unemployment benefits, with state and federal data indicating that for almost half the nation, unemployment rates can’t move much lower. The more than decade-long argument over increasing the federal minimum wage, the gig economy, and the great acceleration has created new opportunities that an increasing number of people are embracing.

National

Toyota is largest donor to post-insurrection election objectors despite pledge to end contributions

[KIRKLAND] – (MTN) More than 4 months after hundreds of insurrectionists stormed the Capitol on January 6 to thwart certification of the 2020 Presidential election results, Toyota has donated over $62,000 to 40 Republicans, the largest amount from any company that pledged to stop GOP contributions in the wake of the election violence.

In the hours and days that followed January 6, a litany of companies made pledges to no longer fund GOP candidates who fomented former President Donald Trump’s followers. According to a report in Popular Information, April 15 was the first major campaign finance deadline since the insurrection. After Congress reconvened to certify the election results, while the sting of tear gas remained in the halls and blood on the floor, 147 Republicans voted against election certification.

What makes Toyota stand out from other companies that have since made donations, is the dollar amounts involved and how many other businesses stood by the pledges they made. According to Maplight, over 1,100 individual corporate PACs donated to at least one Congressperson who objected to election certification in 2020. In the first quarter of 2021, that number plummeted to less than 70.

Benefactors of the Toyota PAC include Congresspersons Virginia Foxx (R-NC), Cliff Bentz (R-OR), Barry Moore (R-AL), Alex Mooney (R-WV), Jeff Duncan (R-CS), Eric Alan “Rick” Crawford (R-AR), Jack Bergman (R-MI), Tim Walberg (RMI), Andy Biggs (R-AZ), and Senator Cynthia Lummis (R-WY).

On April 11, in response to a Newsweek article published on April 10 revealing the donation to Congressperson Toomey, Toyota released a statement they were adjusting their stance on who, and why they would donate to candidates.

“We do not believe it is appropriate to judge members of Congress solely based on their votes on the electoral certification.”

“Based on our thorough review, we decided against giving to some members who, through their statements and actions, undermine the legitimacy of our elections and institutions.”

The donation by Toyota’s PAC to Congressperson Biggs of Arizona stands out as being counter to this position. Congressperson Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) released a nearly 2,000 page report in March outlining the social media activity for dozens of lawmakers in the days leading up to, during, and after the January 6 insurrection. The report for Representative Biggs is over 50 pages long.

As early as November 5, Biggs was retweeting calls to “go to total war,” over the 2020 election. On January 8, 2021, Biggs was already calling any attempt to impeach then-President Trump a “manufactured hoax.”

Tweet thread by republican congressperson andy biggs, Arizona, who has benefit from toyota pac donations since the January 6, insurrrection

There has been significant speculation that Representative Biggs’s words and actions have been at least reviewed by the Department of Justice, but to date, no sitting member of Congress has been directly accused of being directly involved in the insurrection plot.

In a tweet from 2018, Biggs thanked Toyota Financial Services for a tour of their facility in Chandler, Arizona, located in his Congressional district.

congressperson andy biggs, (r-AZ) in 2018 at Toyota financial services offices in chandler, Arizona

On June 29, 2020, Toyota announced they were opening a Parts Distribution Center (PDC) in Phoenix, Arizona, in partnership with Koi Distribution. The press released stated the center would stock 57,000 different parts for Toyota and Lexus products, and employ 61 people.

In 2020, Toyota’s PAC donated $8,000 to Biggs, a significant increase from the $3,500 the PAC donated in the 2018 election cycle.

Another contribution that stands out is one made to Senator Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming. Toyota doesn’t have any offices, engineering, manufacturing, design, distribution centers, or research and development facilities in the deeply red state. According to the Toyota corporate website, the 97,000 square mile state only has 7 Toyota dealerships.

Toyota isn’t alone in supporting Congressional leaders that voted to block certification of the Electoral College results despite pledging not to. Cigna and JetBlue are two consumer brands that stand out. Intel and Microsoft have also made donations to GOP-led organizations, stating they did so with assurances that their money would not go to the 147 previously identified Congressional leaders.

According to Car and Driver, the Toyota RAV4, Camry, Tacoma, Corolla, Highlander, and 4Runner were among the top 25 vehicles sold, based on retail total volume, in 2020. The Seattle PI reported that the Toyota Corolla was the number 5 seller in the city of Seattle for 2020.