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Over the past month, as Elon Musk began to chaotically dismantle government agencies through the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), federal workers started to mobilize to fight back. One step is happening today, February 19: In a national day of action, workers will be protesting in front of federal buildings and Tesla dealerships, along with citizens who want to show support for the work that federal agencies do, from consumer protection to cancer research. The message is that we need to save our public services from billionaires who want to defund them, says Mark Smith, an occupational therapist at the VA hospital in San Francisco who is president of the local chapter of the National Federation of Federal Employees, a union that represents more than 100,000 workers and is part of the Federal Unionists Network, a movement of rank-and-file workers thats independent from union affiliations and has been quickly growing since Musk got to D.C. At a protest in front of the Tesla showroom in San Francisco, federal workers will be joined by citizens who benefit from federal servicesincluding veterans who get healthcare from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA); tenants who get housing from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD); consumers who get the benefit of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), which Musk has all but gutted; and people who appreciate the clean air and water provided by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). All of us will be out there just trying to show that were not going to be quiet, Smith says. Were going to stand up and were going to fight back. Though some of the protests are happening in front of Tesla stores, Smith emphasizes that they stand in solidarity with workers at Tesla factories. “What Musk is doing to us right now is the same thing he has done to Tesla workers in the factories in California,” he says. “In 2017, he tried to lay off a bunch of Tesla workers and say that it was for performance so they could get around the California rules around layoffs,” he says. “That’s a playbook he’s well-versed in.” DOGE plans to access Department of Labor (DOL) data, though unions fought against it. The DOL previously had 17 open investigations into Tesla and SpaceX. OSHA, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, has fined Musk multiple times for safety violations. (OSHA, which has a database containing whistleblower information, is yet another agency DOGE is reportedly targeting.) “I think it behooves all of us to stand up together and say that we’re not going to let Musk drag us back to the 19th century in terms of working conditions,” Smith says. The group also wants to help the public understand that federal employees aren’t just bureaucrats pushing paper. Federal workers are park rangers. Federal workers are VA nurses. Federal workers are the folks who get your social security checks out on time, says Smith. Federal workers are wildland firefighters putting out the massive fires in California and wherever else. Federal workers are scientists and researchers looking at cancer. Many different unions represent different groups of federal workers. Those unions have also been growingSmith says that his own union has seen more sign-ups in the past two weeks than over the past six months. Federal unions have multiple lawsuits underway against DOGE’s work. But the informal Federal Unionist Network, also known as FUN, is helping connect workers across agencies, and educating workers who are new to unions, about how to take collective action. Already, as DOGE has paralyzed agencies like USAID and the CFPB, it’s led to real-world consequences. (In one of many examples, tens of millions of dollars’ worth of emergency food aid, grown by U.S. farmers, sat in ports and warehouses last week waiting to spoil after DOGE virtually shut down USAID.) Some federal employees who have already left, particularly at higher levels of management, have taken valuable institutional knowledge with them that can’t easily be replaced. Many in the newest generation of federal workers, who’ve faced layoffs, have likely decided to find work in the private sector instead. It’s understandable, of course, for federal workers to be afraid of DOGE and feel powerless. But Smith says that they need to recognize the strength of working together. “Our national unions and other groups are doing the hard work of lobbying and filing lawsuits, but at the end of the day, workers acting together is really how we can exercise our power,” he says.
Category:
E-Commerce
One of President Donald Trumps major promises during the 2024 presidential campaign was to launch mass deportations of immigrants living in the U.S. without legal authorization. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency has said that, since January 2025, it is detaining and planning to deport 600 to 1,100 immigrants a day. That marks an increase from the average 282 immigration arrests that happened each day in September 2024 under the Biden administration. The current trend would place the Trump administration on track to apprehend 25,000 immigrants in Trumps first month in office. On an annual basis, this is about 300,000far from the millions and millions of immigrants Trump promised to deport. A lack of funding, immigration officers, immigration detention centers, and other resources has reportedly impeded the administrations deportation work. The Trump administration is seeking $175 billion from Congress to use for the next four years on immigration enforcement, Axios reported on February 11, 2025. If Trump does make good on his promise of mass deportations, our research shows that removing millions of immigrants would be costly for everyone in the U.S., including American citizens and businesses. Food costs will increase One important factor is that mass deportations would weaken key industries in the U.S. that rely on immigrant workers, including those living in the U.S. illegally. Overall, immigrants without legal authorization make up about 5% of the total U.S. workforce. But that overall percentage doesnt reflect these immigrants concentrated presence within various industries. Approximately half of U.S. farmworkers are living in the country without legal authorization, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Some of these immigrant farmworkers are skilled supervisors who make decisions about planting and harvesting. Others know how to use and maintain tractors, loaders, diggers, rakers, fertilizer sprayers, irrigation systems, and other machines crucial to farm operations. If those workers were to be suddenly removed from the country, Americans would see an increase in food costs, including what they spend on groceries and at restaurants. With fewer available workers to pick fruits and vegetables and prepare the food for shipment and distribution, the domestic production of food could decrease, leading to higher costs and more imports. National estimates of the restaurant and food preparation workforce, meanwhile, indicate that between 10% and 15% of those workers are immigrants living in the U.S. illegally. Past state-level immigration enforcement policies offer an idea of what could happen at the national level if Trump were to carry out widespread deportations. For example, a 2011 Alabama law called HB-56 directed local police officers to investigate the immigration status of drivers stopped for speeding. It also prohibited landlords from renting properties to immigrants who do not have legal authorization to work or live in the country. That law and its resulting effects prompted some Alabama-based immigrant workers to leave the state following workplace raids. Their departure wound up costing the state an estimated $2.3 billion to $10.8 billion loss in Alabamas annual gross domestic product due to the loss of workers and economic output. Other industries that rely on immigrants Part of the challenge of mass deportations for industries like construction, nearly a quarter of whose workers are living without legal authorization, is that their workforce is highly skilled and not easily replaced. Immigrant workers are particularly involved in home construction and specialize in such tasks as ceiling and flooring installation as well as roofing and drywall work. Fewer available workers would mean slower home construction, which in turn would make housing more expensive, further compounding existing problems of housing supply and affordability. Shocks from deportations would also slow commercial and public infrastructure construction. Six construction workers, for example, died in April 2024 in the sudden collapse of the Baltimore Key Bridge in Maryland. All of them were Latino immigrants living in the U.S. without legal documentation. Examining the arguments Trump administration officials and other politicians have argued that deporting large numbers of immigrants would help the country save money, since fewer people will use federal and state funds by attending public schools or receiving temporary shelter. Trump said in November 2024 that there is no price tag for large-scale deportations. Its not a question of price tag, Trump said. We have no choice. When people have killed and murdered, when drug lords have destroyed countries, and now theyre going to go back to those countries because theyre not staying here, Trump told NBC News. Trump and his supporters also argue that deporting immigrants would mean more jobs for American workers. But there is compelling evidence to the contrary. First, immigrants are filling labor shortages and doing jobs that many Americans dont want to do, ones that might be unsafe or poorly paid. Even if Americans were willing to do those jobs, there simply arent enough Americans in the workforce to fill existing labor vacuums, let alone an enlarged one following deportations. Second, for employers, having fewer workers in the country translates into higher wages, which in turn means less capital to adapt and grow. For businesses based on consumer debt (think mortgages, car loans, and credit cards) deportations would disrupt the financial sector by removing responsible borrowers who make consistent payments. Third, immigrants living without legal documentation in the U.S. pay more than $96 billion in federal, state, and local taxes per year and consume fewer public benefits than citizens. Immigrants without legal authorization are not eligible for Social Security benefits and cant enroll in Medicare or many other safety net programs, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. The bottom line In other words, people who are living and working in the U.S. without legal authorization are helping to pay, through taxes, the costs of caring for Americans as they age and begin to draw on the nations retirement and healthcare programs. The burden from recent inflation notwithstanding, an economy supported by immigrants living illegally in the U.S. protects Americans. The U.S. would be unable to dodge the economic shocks and high costs that mass deportations would bring about. Francisco I. Pedraza is a professor of political science at Arizona State University. Jason L. Morín is a professor of political science at California State University, Northridge. Loren Collingwood is an associate professor of political science at the University of New Mexico. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Category:
E-Commerce
The return-to-office (RTO) pendulum continues to swing toward the wants of CEOs, and we expect this trend to continue. A 2024 survey of CEOs by KPMG found that 79% believe employees will be back in the office five days a week within three yearsa dramatic increase from 2023s survey. For many leaders, the workplace remains a vital tool for reinforcing company values and driving strategic alignment across teams. Yet, while employers prioritize a return to the collaboration, culture, and innovation that the office fosters, employees say they enjoy the autonomy and flexibility theyve gained working remotely. If leaders dont act consistently and communicate a RTO strategy effectively, theyll further erode employee trust. As a designer and workplace strategist, Ive been reflecting on how to design offices that encourage in-office collaboration, and engaging in deep conversations with clients about how they are implementing RTO policies. “Trust begins with leading by example, Jon Martin told me recently. Martin is the North American CEO of AEW Capital Management, one of the worlds largest global real-estate investment managers. AEW is a client of my firm Elkus Manfredi Architects, and we helped them reimagine their headquarters in Boston. AEW currently doesnt have a mandate for how many days a week its employees are expected to work out of its office. But its leadership teamlike many othershas been explicit about its desire to promote a predominately in-office culture. To encourage employees to be in the office more often, AEWs senior management team works in-person nearly full-time. If you have a return-to-office policy, whatever it may be, and it is not upheld by leadership, you will lose credibility quickly, says Martin. Success begins with transparency RTO policies often fail because inconsistent actions erode trust among employees, making it essential to align leadership actions with transparent communication. Employees often ask: “Are our leaders considering our needs? Are they asking for our insights? Will these mandates truly increase efficiency and purpose? These are valid concerns that can be addressed through a thoughtfully designed process to maintain organizational trust. I know from experience that listening to and engaging with the people for whom you are designing is immensely important for creating solutions and ensuring buy-in. Research shows involving employees in policy development enhances their commitment to change initiatives. Best practices for company leaders to take include: Establish a shared vision before seeking feedback. Frame discussions around organizational goals to align responses with achieving these objectives rather than focusing solely on personal preferences. Ask for input within a structured framework. Provide context and priorities to guide decision-making rather than posing open-ended questions like, Do you prefer working at the office or at home? Be transparent about trade-offs. Set expectations early, acknowledging theyre unlikely to meet everyones needs perfectly, and balance individual preferences with broader organizational priorities. Incorporate feedback thoughtfully and communicate decisions clearly. Asking for input and then failing to address itor worse, ignoring it entirelycan erode trust. Even if not all suggestions are implemented, explain decisions and how feedback shaped them. Mutual trust = a balanced solution When leadership demonstrates its trust in employees, staff are increasingly willing to collaborate on changes within their organizations. In fact, research finds that creating internal structures for feedback makes employees feel more included in organizational decisions and has downstream benefits on productivity and profitability. Leaders should also encourage employees to consider the broader impact of decisions on the business, fostering a sense of shared investment in a company’s path. Insights on team dynamics and performance can help leaders communicate the workplace strategies that support both individual and collective success. From intangible to innovative Crafting a successful return-to-office strategy is much like effective workplace design: Both transform intangible inputsemotions, interests, and individual experiencesinto solutions that benefit everyone. Martin sums up the stakes: If your return to the office policy feels administrative, is inconsistently applied across your organization, or lacks support from leadership, it will be nearly impossible to have a shared vision and achieve success.
Category:
E-Commerce
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