NEW YORK: As a waitress, Nadine Morsch was used to having to force an occasional smile for an unpleasant customer. But when a man she was serving made a reference to grabbing her butt, she warned him he better not try. And he made her pay.
For the rest of the hour he was in the diner, she says, he was “running me around as much as possible.”
Morsch says she tolerated him, because she needed a good tip.
Experiences like that are one reason activists are invoking the #MeToo movement in the push for more states to adopt higher minimum wages for tipped workers. They say a wage structure that leaves workers dependent on tips often forces them to put up with harassing and abusive behavior from their customers or risk not being paid.
The effort has been around for years but has taken on new momentum lately with the increased reckoning and awareness of sexual misconduct. Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has called for public hearings; there’s a June ballot question in Washington, D.C., and an effort is underway to get the issue on the state-wide ballot in Michigan.
A higher base wage, advocates say, could free tipped workers from the fear of speaking out.
“I wouldn’t have needed to feel like my entire life was in his power,” said Morsch, who now works at a pub in Rochester, New York.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are about 2 million people working as restaurant servers in the United States, about 70 percent of them women.
Currently, the federal government allows workers who get tipped, such as servers and bartenders, to be paid as little as $2.13 per hour if they make at least $7.25 per hour with tips included.
No state is talking about ending the practice of tipping. But seven states — Alaska, California, Minnesota, Nevada, Oregon, Washington and Wisconsin — mandate that tipped workers be paid at least the same minimum wage as everyone else. Another 26 states require employers to pay tipped workers a wage at least a little higher than the federal minimum.
Restaurant Opportunities Centers United, an advocacy group, says it has found that service employees in the states that require the same minimum wage for everyone, even tipped workers, reported lower levels of harassment than states that did not.
“This is about the power imbalance that women face on the job,” said Restaurant Opportunities Centers United co-founder Saru Jayaraman.
Cuomo said late last year that he was open to the possibility of joining the states that have eliminated the subminimum tipped wage.
It’s an issue that’s come up in New York before and gone nowhere while lawmakers focused on raising the standard minimum wage, currently at $13 in New York City for companies with more than 11 employees and $8.65 for tipped workers. Minimum wages are lower in other parts of the state. Cuomo’s administration could make the change itself through an order from the Department of Labor, if the legislature does not act.
Restaurant workers can be sharply divided over whether a higher base wage would help.
Maine created a level minimum wage for tipped workers in a voter referendum in 2017, but almost immediately reversed course. Servers said they were worried customers would stop tipping altogether.
Part-time New York City waitress Sarah March, 30, shares that concern.
“As soon as they hear that I’m already making enough money, I just don’t feel like anyone’s going to put forth the extra effort to compensate the servers,” she said.
March agreed that sexual harassment on the job is a problem. But a higher minimum wage, she said, will not deter customers engaging in improper behavior.
“They would just not tip and continue to act the way they were inclined,” she said.
Some wait staff said if they were less reliant on tips, it might change a workplace culture that is conducive of abuse, and not just from customers.
New York State Restaurant Association President Melissa Autilio Fleischut said a higher minimum wage for tipped workers would only saddle employers with expenses they can’t afford and wouldn’t help deal with sexual misconduct, either.
Harassment, she said, “cuts across numerous industries and has very little to do with what a woman makes or what a sexually harassed person makes,” she said. “I don’t see the correlation between the tip credit and sexual harassment.”
Tipped workers invoke #MeToo in fight to raise minimum wage
Tipped workers invoke #MeToo in fight to raise minimum wage
French-Algerian writer Kamel Daoud wins top French literary prize
- The prize money itself amounts to just 10 euros ($11), paid by a cheque that winners usually frame and hang on the wall rather than cash.
PARIS: French-Algerian writer Kamel Daoud on Monday won France’s top literary prize, the Goncourt, for a novel centered on Algeria’s civil war between the government and Islamists in the 1990s.
The jury needed just one round of voting to award the coveted prize to Daoud for his novel “Houris” about what has become known as Algeria’s “black decade.”
The book, written in French, is banned in Algeria.
Daoud was already known internationally for his 2013 debut novel “The Meursault Investigation” — a retelling of Albert Camus’ “The Stranger” from the opposite angle — for which he won the First Novel category of the Goncourt prize.
The writer, who used to work as a journalist and columnist in Algeria, has stirred controversy with his analyzes of society in Algeria.
The prestigious Goncourt prize usually sparks book sales in the hundreds of thousands for the winning author.
However, the prize money itself amounts to just 10 euros ($11), paid by a cheque that winners usually frame and hang on the wall rather than cash.
Daoud’s main rival for this year’s edition was Gael Faye, a Rwandan-born writer, composer and rapper, whose novel “Jacaranda” deals with the rebuilding of Rwanda after the 1994 genocide.
While losing out on the Goncourt, Faye was Monday handed the Renaudot, another coveted prize awarded during the French literary competition season.
Macron, on X, congratulated both writers, saying that “thanks to their voices, our French language expresses beauty, tragedy and universality even better.”
World’s largest captive crocodile Cassius dies in Australia
- Cassius, weighing in at more than one tonne, had been in declining health since October 15
- He took the title after the 2013 death of Philippines crocodile Lolong, who measured 6.17 meters
SYDNEY: A 5.48-meter (18 feet) Australian crocodile that held the world record as the largest crocodile in captivity has died, a wildlife sanctuary said on Saturday. He was thought to be more than 110 years old.
Cassius, weighing in at more than one tonne, had been in declining health since Oct. 15, Marineland Melanesia Crocodile Habitat said on Facebook.
“He was very old and believed to be living beyond the years of a wild Croc,” according to a post by the organization, based on Green Island near the Queensland tourist town of Cairns.
“Cassius will be deeply missed, but our love and memories of him will remain in our hearts forever.”
The group’s website said he had lived at the sanctuary since 1987 after being transported from the neighboring Northern Territory, where crocodiles are a key part of the region’s tourist industry.
Cassius, a saltwater crocodile, held the Guinness World Records title as the world’s largest crocodile in captivity.
He took the title after the 2013 death of Philippines crocodile Lolong, who measured 6.17m (20 feet 3 inches) long, according to Guinness.
Rapper Young Thug pleads guilty to gang, drug and gun charges
ATLANTA: Rapper Young Thug pleaded guilty Thursday in Atlanta to gang, drug and gun charges and will be released from jail, though he could be put back behind bars if he violates the terms of his sentence.
The 33-year-old Grammy winning artist, whose given name is Jeffery Williams, entered his pleas without reaching a deal with prosecutors after negotiations between the two sides broke down, lead prosecutor Adriane Love said. That left the sentence completely up to Fulton County Superior Court Judge Paige Reese Whitaker.
Young Thug’s plea comes two and a half years after he was arrested and charged and nearly a year after the prosecution started presenting evidence in the problem-plagued trial. Jury selection at the courthouse in Atlanta began in January 2023 and took nearly 10 months. Prosecutors have called dozens of witnesses since opening statements last November in the trial of six defendants.
The trial has faced many delays, including in July when the original judge was removed after two defendants sought his recusal, citing a meeting the judge held with prosecutors and a state witness.
Young Thug pleaded guilty to one gang charge, three drug charges and two gun charges. He also entered a no contest plea to another gang charge and a racketeering conspiracy charge, meaning that he decided not to contest those charges but can be punished for them as if he had pleaded guilty.
The judge imposed a sentence of 40 years with the first five to be served in prison but commuted to time served, followed by 15 years on probation. If he successfully completes that probation without any violations, another 20 years will be commuted to time served. But if he violates the conditions, he will have to serve those 20 years in addition to any penalty for a probation violation.
Young Thug must stay away from the metro Atlanta area for the first 10 years of his probation, except for weddings, funerals, graduations or serious illness of family members, the judge said.
But she also ordered him to return to the Atlanta area four times a year during his probation to make a live anti-gang, anti-gun violence presentation at a school or a community organization serving children. She said that can count toward the 100 hours of community service she ordered him to perform each year during probation.
He’s also not allowed to associate with gang members or with the victims or other defendants in the case, with the exception of his brother and the rapper Gunna, with whom he has contractual obligations. He also cannot promote any criminal street gang or gang activity and can’t use hand signs or terminology that promotes a street gang.
Additional conditions include submitting to random drug screens and not possessing a gun. But he is allowed to travel both nationally and internationally for work, even while on probation.
Love had outlined for the judge the evidence she would have presented to prove Young Thug’s guilt, including some of his rap lyrics. She asked the judge to sentence him to 45 years, with 25 years in prison and the remaining 20 years on probation.
The rapper’s lead attorney Brian Steel said they “vehemently disagree” with many of the statements Love made and said it was “offensive” that the state is using Young Thug’s lyrics against him.
Steel said the evidence against his client is weak and accused prosecutors of misrepresenting and hiding evidence, saying Young Thug was “falsely accused.” Steel said he told his client that he thought they were winning the trial and should go through to a jury verdict.
“But he told me, ‘I can’t wait another three months if there is any possibility I could go home because I have children that are hurting. I have things to do,’” Steel said.
Steel asked the judge to impose a sentence of 45 years with five in prison commuted to time served and 40 years on probation.
Young Thug asked the judge to let him go home, saying he wouldn’t be in a similar situation again.
“I’ve learned from my mistakes, you know. I come from nothing and I’ve made something and I didn’t take full advantage of it. I’m sorry,” he said.
The judge said she appreciated that he realized the impact that he has on people worldwide. She said rap music may involve a lot of posturing but that children emulate some of the dangerous behavior mentioned in songs. She encouraged Young Thug to use his talent and influence to encourage kids to do the right thing.
“I want you to try to be more of the solution and less of the problem,” Whitaker said.
A tremendously successful rapper, Young Thug started his own record label, Young Stoner Life or YSL. Prosecutors have said he also co-founded a violent criminal street gang and that YSL stands for Young Slime Life.
He was charged two years ago in a sprawling indictment accusing him and more than two dozen other people of conspiring to violate Georgia’s anti-racketeering law. He also was charged with gang, drug and gun crimes.
Three of his Young Thug’s co-defendants had already pleaded guilty this week after reaching deals with prosecutors. The pleas leave the fates of two other co-defendants still undecided.
Nine people charged in the indictment accepted plea deals before the trial began. Twelve others are being tried separately. Prosecutors dropped charges against one defendant after he was convicted of murder in an unrelated case.
Apple results top Wall Street targets on strong iPhone sales, shares drop on outlook
- Early iPhone 16 sales grew faster than iPhone 15 sales, says CEO Tim Cook
- Apple’s AI strategy includes new iPhone 16 features
Apple beat Wall Street sales and profit expectations on Thursday for its fiscal fourth quarter, bolstered by strong early sales of iPhone 16, and forecast revenue growth of low to mid single digits for the current period.
“We expect our December quarter, total company revenue to grow low to mid single digits year over year,” CFO Luca Maestri said on a call with analysts. Analysts had expected revenue growth of 6.65 percent to $127.53 billion during the first quarter, according to LSEG data.
Shares dropped about 2 percent in extended trading. Apple said sales were $94.93 billion, ahead of Wall Street targets of $94.58 billion, according to LSEG. Earnings of $1.64 per share, excluding a massive one-time tax charge in the European Union, topped analyst expectations of $1.60 per share. Sales during the fourth quarter of Apple’s iPhone, the company’s main product, were up 5.5 percent to $46.22 billion, compared with analyst estimates of $45.47 billion. Other product lines missed expectations and the China sales total was less than Wall Street expected.
Apple’s fourth quarter ended Sept. 28, meaning it reflects only a few days of sales of its iPhone 16 series that went on sale Sept. 20. Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook told Reuters that iPhone 16 sales grew faster than iPhone 15 sales did a year earlier, with both phones on sale for the same number of days in the fourth quarter.
Cook also said Apple customers are downloading a new version of its iPhone operating system with what it calls Apple Intelligence features at twice the rate they had the year before.
“We’ve had great feedback from customers and developers already,” Cook said. “We’re off to a good start.”
Tom Forte, an analyst at Maxim Group, attributed Apple’s slight share drop to China sales coming in below expectations.
“We see the potential for sustained weakness in China as we await additional details on the earnings call regarding the potential timing of Apple Intelligence in that important country,” Forte said.
Apple’s call with analysts began at 5 p.m. ET (2100 GMT).
The rollout of Apple’s artificial-intelligence strategy, which it revealed this year, hinges on how well its new phones sell.
Rather than introduce AI in a standalone app or service, Apple has sprinkled Apple Intelligence throughout its most recent operating systems as new features, such as the ability to help re-write an email in a more professional tone. Those features will mostly be available on iPhone 16 models, which feature more powerful computing chips, although the pro versions of the iPhone 15 both work with Apple Intelligence. While some of those Apple Intelligence features arrived this week, others have been delayed, which has led some Wall Street analysts to wonder whether consumers will be slower to upgrade their devices this year while flagship software features trickle out.
The early iPhone 16 results on Thursday could allay some of those concerns. IPhone sales helped steady Apple’s fourth-quarter sales in China, which were down less than 1 percent to $15.03 billion overall. Analysts were expecting China sales of $15.78 billion on average, according to data from Visible Alpha.
Apple’s rivals Microsoft and Meta both said this week they expect continued increases in spending to support their AI strategies. Apple said payments for property and equipment — a measure of its capital expenditures — were up $2.91 billion from the previous quarter to $9.45 billion.
Apple’s lower spending comes in part because it uses third-party data centers for some AI work. Some aspects of Apple Intelligence do rely on Apple’s own data centers, but the company is using its own in-house chips to power those features.
“There would be some (financial) benefit to us by using our own silicon, obviously, but that’s not the reason we’re doing it. We’re doing it because we can provide the same standard of privacy and security that we can provide on device,” Cook said.
Sales in Apple’s services business, which includes iCloud storage and Apple Music, were $24.97 billion, compared with analyst expectations of $25.28 billion, according to LSEG. Mac and iPad sales were $7.74 billion and $6.95 billion, respectively, compared to estimates of $7.82 billion and $7.09 billion, according to LSEG data.
Sales in Apple’s home and wearables business, which includes its Apple Watch and AirPods devices, fell to $9.04 billion, compared with estimates of $9.2 billion, according to LSEG.
Earnings per share were 97 cents including the charge related to a one-time multi-billion-euro European tax payment.
Starbucks reports drop in comparable sales, earnings as global demand suffers
- The Seattle-based company’s strategy to drive demand through promotions and improved loyalty program offers fell flat
Starbucks on Wednesday reported a 7 percent drop in global comparable sales for the fourth quarter as the coffee chain struggles to revive demand for its pricey lattes in the key US and China markets.
Last week, Starbucks reported preliminary fourth-quarter results and suspended its annual forecast through the next fiscal year as new CEO Brian Niccol tries to steer the company toward the path to growth.
The Seattle-based company’s strategy to drive demand through promotions and improved loyalty program offers fell flat in the face of muted spending from cost-conscious consumers.
Starbucks is also facing an uphill battle in China, where it is dealing with a choppy macroeconomic recovery and stiff competition from local brands.
Comparable sales in China, the company’s second-largest market after the US, declined for three straight quarters, falling 14 percent in the fourth quarter.
Investors, however, are betting on seasoned industry veteran and ex-Chipotle Mexican Grill head Niccol to simplify the company’s leadership and operating structure, and reinvigorate the coffee-house culture at Starbucks’ US stores.
Shares of the company have risen about 26 percent since Niccol replaced Laxman Narasimhan as CEO in a surprise announcement in August. They were down about 1 percent in extended trading on Wednesday.
International comparable sales fell 9 percent in the fourth quarter, compared with expectations of a 6.5 percent drop, as per data compiled by LSEG.
Starbucks’ loyalty program growth was also tempered in the fourth quarter, with 90-day active members in the US remaining flat sequentially. That compares with a 3 percent sequential rise reported in the third quarter.
The company’s net income fell to $909.3 million, or 80 cents per share, from $1.22 billion, or $1.06 per share, a year earlier in the fourth quarter ended Sept 29.
