Welcome back to The Flyover, your daily digest of what local media outlets and Twitter-ers are gabbing about.
Keith on a Wreath? Jay on a Sleigh? Em on a Gem? Jess on a Dress?
Whoever’s running the Twins’ social media account had a cute idea for the Friday before Xmas. The first tweet in a thread says “You’ve heard of Elf on a Shelf… now get ready for,” and the follow up tweets show a Twins player on some surface or object that rhymes with their name. I won’t give any of the answers away, because it’s more fun to find out for yourself. This is also a good time to remind you that Elf on a Shelf is a creepy as hell way to make your child comfortable with the surveillance state.
You’ve heard of Elf on a Shelf… now get ready for
— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) December 22, 2023
Say Goodbye to Salary History Questions
The Minnesota Legislature’s 2023 session has long since ended, but we’re still finding out about goodies tucked away in the legislation it passed. For instance, as Maya Rae at the Star Tribune reports today, as of January 1, prospective employers may no longer inquire about your salary history. What’s so great about that? Well, experts say that salary history questions are a way for bosses to pay women and people of color less. The idea is, if you’ve been paid below average at your past job, employers will use that information to pay you less at your new job. And there’s evidence that this works too: According to a Boston University School of Law study there was an 8% increase in women’s pay and a 13% increase in pay for Black workers in states that passed such a ban.
United Steelworkers Booted From Mayo
Here at Racket we’re big fans of the Minnesota Reformer, and particularly Max Nesterak’s labor reporting. (In fact, search for Max’s name or his colleague Deena Winter’s on our site and you’ll probably pull up 90% of our Flyovers.) Today, Nesterak reports that the United Steelworkers District 11 has officially pulled out of the Mayo Clinic’s hospital in Austin, following a vote by a majority of 70 nurses and other employees to withdraw from the union. They were persuaded to jump ship by the National Right to Work Legal Defense Fund, an anti-union group that specializes in such activities. “We believe that many of the workers at Mayo were misled by a pro-corporate organization that does not have their best interests at heart,” said USW District 11 Director Cathy Drummond. I believe that too.
Johnny Knoxville Ate Here
If you’re the kind of person who loves stories about celebrities eating in the Twin Cities, well Merry Christmas to you, because The Dukes of Hazzard’s Johnny Knoxville had breakfast at the Capital View Cafe in St. Paul on Tuesday. When asked about Knoxville’s visit by Bring Me the News, cafe owner Kathy Bauer said, “Very nice man.” And, those, my friends, are the last words I will type for this website in 2023. Going out with a bang.
