This column is my end of year summary of important new employment laws coming in 2023. California is at the forefront of groundbreaking laws. This year is no exception. AB 257—Fast-Food Council that sets industry standards The bill creates a state Fast-Food Council that will establish sector-wide minimum standards on wages, hours and working conditions...
Op-ed: Young moms have a solution to the child care crisis in Santa Clara County
In Santa Clara County and throughout California, young mothers do not have equitable access to child care or economic opportunities. In a study conducted by the Young Women’s Freedom Center and Alliance for Girls, young mothers in Santa Clara County said their main barriers to child care were high costs, service ineligibility for parents under 18, lack...
Op-ed: In a multiracial democracy, we need to demand better from our leaders
San Jose councilmembers voted 7-4 on Dec. 5 to fill two vacancies through an appointment process by the end of January. We’re grateful to Councilmembers David Cohen, Sergio Jimenez, Dev Davis, Sylvia Arenas, Maya Esparza, Raul Peralez and Magdalena Carrasco for honoring their positions and doing what’s right for San Jose. Their decision ensures residents...
Bramson: A warm light in the winter chill
With a winter storm rolling in on this bleak December night, it’s easy to start thinking about all that has continued to go wrong in 2022. Set against a backdrop of a looming recession, you can look out across the Silicon Valley and see a place where there just aren’t enough affordable homes, wages are...
Perry: Housing lessons from the 2022 elections
The 2022 elections in San Jose taught us once again that candidates fail to address the housing and homelessness issue at their peril. Cindy Chavez actually had a better housing program than Matt Mahan did, but it appeared that Mahan cared more deeply about the issue, because he kept hammering on it. Although Chavez clearly...
Philbrick: High-speed rail is a sustainable way to connect California
High-speed rail boasts the potential to connect Californians faster than any other mode of ground transport, create a multitude of jobs in high-cost cities and increase economic activity—all while expanding sustainable transportation choices and reducing emissions. Transportation is the largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in the United States. According to the Environmental Protection Agency,...
Rodríguez: Addressing the climate crisis through education
I recently had the distinct pleasure of visiting the Lab for Nature-Based Living—the flagship garden of the California Native Garden Foundation. Located at 76 Race Street near downtown San Jose, the foundation is a nonprofit whose mission is to create a new land-use model in order to “leverage urban spaces for education, workforce development and...
Staedler: San Jose’s development policy is redlining 2.0
San Jose like other parts of the country is dealing with the harsh realities of past racial injustice. This has sparked “equity lens” and fairness conversations in the city’s budgeting of vital services. One of the undeniable wrongs that can’t be ignored is redlining. Redlining was a practice of creating racially segregated neighborhoods in every...
Morrish: Why it’s time to let the ‘Breeze of Innovation’ go
Growing up an immigrant from the United Kingdom, San Jose and the South Bay have always been a breath of fresh air compared to the larger cities and metropolitan areas I would later in life explore. To say we don’t have any world class landmarks isn’t true. We have the Lick Observatory, the “block” from...
Robinson: For the sake of San Jose, an appointment please
Appointing new members to the San Jose City Council is in the best interest of the city, can provide unity of government and is more in line with the reasoning of our national founders than an expensive special election. The simple facts are these: A special election will cost around $10 million of taxpayer dollars...