Labor

Conservative attacks on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) have sent a chill across the tech sector. University science and engineering programs have curtailed race-based admissions and scholarships after last year’s Supreme Court ruling on affirmative action.

The broadband industry needs more workers. Specifically, it needs tens of thousands more construction workers and broadband technicians to complete a coming wave of government-funded deployment projects or else critical broadband expansions could be delayed. Some original research conducted by Continuum Capital found that the U.S.

A framework for Build America, Buy America (BABA) self-certification and compliance in the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program:

We hear a lot of talk from the broadband industry about how there’s a labor shortage. But there’s not so much a labor shortage as there is “a shortage of good jobs,” according to Ceilidh Gao, senior research associate at Communication Workers of America (CWA). Wages “have gone down in recent decades” and the jobs are “less safe than they used to be,” she said.

States and localities find themselves in a historic moment in relation to broadband investment.

SAE International, a professional organization for wireless engineers,  sponsored a report at the end of 2023 that says that the U.S. is already facing a shortage of engineers, and that the problem is going to get worse. According to the report, the U.S. needs 400,000 new engineers every year, but one-third of engineering jobs go unfilled, a trend expected to last through 2030. The SAE report lists some of the reasons for the engineering shortfall.

As people increasingly look to trade jobs in pursuit of more financial stability (without debilitating debt), one role worth considering is the broadband technician, according to Keith Busby. Currently a service technician for AT&T, Busby largely works on fiber installation, maintenance and 

The COVID-19 pandemic has spurred global change from traditional office-based work to remote work, driven by policy interventions, and resulting in a significant number of employees worldwide transitioning to working from home. Existing research presents conflicting evidence regarding the relationship between remote work and productivity. However, few have examined the specific mechanisms through which remote work affects productivity.

An interesting article by the Economic Innovation Group (EIG) documents an economic rebound in left-behind counties. Economists, researchers, and politicians have used the term left-behind counties to denote the parts of the country that have experienced economic stagnation or decline compared to the national average.

On July 16 and 17, 2024, Amazon will hold its annual Prime Day event, where it discounts products for Amazon Prime subscribers. The event is a major source of revenue for the company, but Prime Day is also a major cause of injuries for the warehouse workers who make it possible.