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Not clear whether wage increases drive automation

By Pauline Bartolone

January 20, 2016

Workers at Town and Country Event Rentals watch the installation of an industrial dishwasher. The machine will do the work now being done by 6-8 employees. — Nancy Pastor for CALmatters

Some business owners are seeking out robots to deal with minimum wage hikes.

POSTED IN: minimum wage automation california

Tech boom starts to transform Oakland real estate

January 19, 2016

<em>At The Port Workspaces in Oakland, extras like slides from one floor to the other, kombucha bars, and "community hammocks" are considered standard equipment.</em> — The Port Workspaces

Commercial real-estate developers scramble to keep up with next-gen office demands

POSTED IN: Oakland california Silicon Valley

Feeling the economic power of Powerball

By Sally Herships

January 11, 2016

Powerball lottery tickets in front of the splash screen for the powerball.com website. The jackpot for the US Powerball lottery rose to a whopping $1.3 billion on January 10 after organizers said there was no winner in the weekend draw. — KAREN BLEIER/AFP/Getty Images

The jackpot has never been this high, but not all the winners cash in big

POSTED IN: lottery powerball california

California town divided over downtown homeless shelter

By April Dembosky

December 28, 2015

Signs in the window of a downtown Fort Bragg business urge residents to sign a petition for a ballot measure that would prohibit social service agencies in the downtown area. — April Dembosky

The debate is over a historic hotel offering transitional housing.

POSTED IN: homelessness california shelter downtowns

In California, minimum wage boon can lead to child care costs

By Deepa Fernandes

December 24, 2015

Alerna Iznaga Capiro earns $12.25 an hour delivering pizzas for Dominos in Oakland after the city¹s minimum wage raise kicked in. — Deepa Fernandes/KPCC

How minimum wage can help — and hurt — workers with children.

POSTED IN: minimum wage child care california

Insurance companies getting into the firefighting game

November 25, 2015

A house is engulfed in flames as firefighters attempt to put it out during the Valley fire in Seigler Springs, California. — Josh Edelson/Getty Images

Santa Ana winds in excess of 50 mph can spread fires quicker than ever.

POSTED IN: firefighting insurance California drought

U.S. Forest Service sued over a bottler's water permit

October 14, 2015

A view of the San Bernardino National Forest, where Nestle has been piping water. — jcookfisher/Wikimedia Commons

Nestle pays nearly nothing for the water it bottles as Arrowhead.

POSTED IN: Nestle bottled water California drought

Labor board landmark ruling affects contract workers

August 28, 2015

The national labor board has ruled that Central California sanitation workers can negotiate directly with the sanitation company and not just the temp agency that hires and supervises them. — JEAN-FRANCOIS MONIER/AFP/Getty Image

The ruling could change the relationship between businesses and subcontractors/

POSTED IN: Labor Unions california sanitation

A rural town hates the coming of high-speed trains

July 29, 2015

The route proposed for California's high-speed rail line would send trains through rural Acton at more than 200 miles an hour. Ray and Elizabeth Billet fear the rail line could pollute the water supply for their peach and pear farm and lower their property value. — Jeff Tyler

Tiny Acton, California, fears railway will bring water and noise pollution.

POSTED IN: Acton trains california