Workplace

Silicon Valley models value of noncompete ban

24 Apr 2024

A new FTC rule forbids US companies from stopping employees joining a rival, or starting one. Freeing up opportunities for a fifth of the workforce should boost pay. California’s tech hub also showcases other benefits of labor mobility. Intel, for example, exists because of it.

World economy’s star athlete may run out of puff

23 Apr 2024

The IMF crowned the United States as the champion of global growth at last week's summit. A predicted rise in GDP of 2.7% this year is welcome as Europe and China struggle. But high debt and hard-to-repeat gains in productivity and the workforce will limit American staying power.

Starbucks union is labor’s mighty mouse moment

6 Mar 2024

An organization representing workers withdrew its board nominees for the $103 bln coffee company after getting some concessions, which look perfunctory. But the structure of Starbucks’ workforce isn’t amenable to successful collective bargaining. Even a small labor win is a win.

Four-day week is clever fix to economic malaise

24 Jan 2024

Companies including EssilorLuxottica and Panasonic are experimenting with shorter working weeks. Pilot schemes have led to revenue increases, declines in burnout rates and lower churn. It’s an anti-inflationary way to keep staff happy and give them free time to consume more.

Spotify and Netflix hum different content tunes

4 Dec 2023

The music-streaming service is slashing its workforce by 17% to stem losses. Like Netflix, Spotify is beholden to onerous content costs. But Reed Hastings’ company is making shows and has higher gross margins. Spotify boss Daniel Ek’s ‘buy’ strategy hasn’t borne regular profit.

Starbucks strike is a union buzzkill

16 Nov 2023

Baristas at 200 stores will walk out during the $118 bln chain’s “Red Cup” promotion. It’s bold given the state of organized labor, but threatens little impact. A coffee shutdown just isn’t as disruptive as freezing capital-intensive, lengthy production cycles for cars or movies.

WeWork’s big splash ends as a drop in the bucket

7 Nov 2023

The shared-office company once valued at $47 bln has collapsed, with lenders taking over in bankruptcy. SoftBank and its fund backers will be licking $16 bln of wounds, but communal workspaces are here to stay. And commercial real estate investors have far bigger worries.

Capital Calls: Starbucks’ wages

6 Nov 2023

Concise views on global finance: Only US baristas with five years of experience will get above-average raises in 2024. Despite more than 9,000 organized workers, Starbucks is dodging the labor pressures faced by shipping firms and automakers this year.

Capital Calls: Four-day workweek

19 Sep 2023

Concise views on global finance: US Senator Bernie Sanders joined striking autoworkers in urging a conversation about shortening the workweek. Rising productivity has long enabled labor to win fewer hours. With disruptive new technologies rising, bigger victories make sense.

Capital Calls: Citi shakeup

13 Sep 2023

Concise views on global finance: Boss Jane Fraser is restructuring divisions and slashing jobs, calling the moves the most “consequential changes” to how the mega-bank has been organized in 20 years. Given its tortured history, that's a big claim to live up to.

Next job-market challenge: the Great Unresignation

4 Aug 2023

Recent labor shortages pushed up hiring costs for US companies. But firms including Wells Fargo and State Street now say fewer staff quit than they expected, so they’re having to give them a push. It’s the kind of wrinkle that makes seemingly healthy jobs data harder to read.

Gig work value is too great to rush a US overhaul

11 May 2023

Biden’s pick for Labor Secretary has moved to classify freelancers like Uber drivers as regular employees. That would give gig workers benefits, but risks discouraging firms from hiring them. With freelancers earning $1.4 trillion, a hiring slump could weaken the broader economy.

Doers, not dreamers, are the best tech CEOs

4 Apr 2023

Google is skimping on office supplies and Lyft’s founders are out the door. As investors shift focus away from growth and towards cutting costs, they will replace idealistic leaders with seasoned operators. The likes of Mark Zuckerberg have more to prove.

Intel points cost-cutting laser in wrong direction

1 Feb 2023

Turning around the embattled $117 bln chipmaker requires capital and an inspired workforce. Slashing managerial pay by 5%-15% will save money, but risks demoralizing staff and losing the best of them. Suspending a $6 bln dividend would conserve cash in a more effective way.

UK has wrong approach to EU-style strike limits

16 Jan 2023

British PM Rishi Sunak wants to force minimum service levels during public sector strikes, as exist in the rest of Europe. But the plan is too broad and coercive, looking like a knee-jerk reaction to the current unrest. It needs to be better thought-out, in a pacified atmosphere.

Goldman’s job cuts will be a problem shared

20 Dec 2022

The division that houses Marcus generates little return on its $16 bln of equity. Slashing too much in consumer and wealth would be counterproductive, however. Shareholders mostly subsidize the business; now, unlucky investment banking staff will shoulder some of the burden, too.

Capital Calls: Axing the tweeps

31 Oct 2022

Concise views on global finance: Elon Musk looks set to eliminate jobs en masse at Twitter, which augurs significant downsizing across Silicon Valley.

Gig worker rule comes at bad time for gig economy

11 Oct 2022

President Biden’s administration wants to turn more independent contractors into employees. The move may squeeze firms like Uber and DoorDash that rely on casual labor. Workers are already scarce and inflation is squeezing consumers. Higher costs threaten long-awaited earnings.

Silicon Valley’s post-Covid brain drain

27 Sep 2022

Before the pandemic, 75% of venture capital was invested in California, New York and Massachusetts. In this Exchange podcast, AOL co-founder Steve Case explains that a hybrid working revolution is reversing that trend and encouraging permanent investment away from the coasts.

Capital Calls: Clock ticks for reining in TikTok

26 Sep 2022

Concise views on global finance: The Chinese-owned social media network’s prodigious growth will make the U.S. government’s attempts to allay security concerns trickier still.