High childcare costs hit moms without college degree; Understanding the new noncompete ban

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Good morning,

We wanted to start with a glimpse of some civility in Washington, since it feels so rare these day. You might remember that House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) rolled his eyes over and over and over again, during President Biden’s State of the Union speech earlier this year.

Well, we have learned that he actually recently apologized to Biden about it!

RealClearPolitics reports that at a luncheon on Capitol Hill recently, he pulled Biden aside to 'apologize for the eye-roll memes that went around the world.'
The president laughed, saying, 'I'm just grateful you didn't rip up my speech' — recalling former Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s reaction to then President Trump’s State of the Union. Johnson joked that he had friends who actually wanted him to light the speech on fire.

It is a reminder that some folks in Washington are still willing to say, ‘I’m sorry,’ when they feel they have gone too far. Have a good one!

Mosheh, Jill, & Lauren

☀️ FORECASTING AN UNUSUALLY HOT SUMMER

It’s gonna be a hot one…according to a new outlook for the summer from the National Weather Service. Hotter-than-average conditions are predicted for nearly the entire country, except a portion of the northern Plains. The highest odds for high temps are in the Northeast, as well as a stretch from Texas to the Pacific Northwest.

Causing the high temps: It is a combination of climate change as well as the likely switch from the El Nino to the La Nina climate pattern—which typically heats things up in North America.

TIME TO PREPARE
More than any other extreme weather event (floods, hurricanes or tornadoes) HEAT kills the most Americans in a year. 2023 was the warmest year on record across the globe, and this summer.

Reality check: “Climate change is causing more frequent and intense heat waves that are longer in duration, resulting in nearly 1,220 deaths each year in the US alone,” said NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad.
The good news: "For the first time, we'll be able to know how hot is too hot for health, and not just today, but for the coming weeks," affirmed Dr. Aaron Bernstein, director of the National Center for Environmental Health.

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER
The kind of heat expected can have major health impacts, especially on our hearts. Most at risk are seniors, pregnant women, people with asthma, young children and individuals with chronic conditions. But, anyone can get hurt when areas get to certain temperatures.

The tool: The NOAA and the CDC’s “HeatRisk” is a seven-day heat forecast to flag if an area is dangerous. It is divided into a number and color-coded scale: zero (green) = no risk to four (magenta) = extreme.
The outlooks are designed to be personalized by location, as "90 degrees in Miami is not the same as 90 degrees in Portland, Maine," Dr. Mandy Cohen, director of the CDC, said.
Health care providers also have new guidelines on how to educate patients about coping with heat waves and the health impacts of extreme heat.

👶 CHILDCARE COST CONTINUE TO CLIMB

Finding child care, let alone an affordable option, continues to strain American families, and is forcing more moms to have to leave the workforce.

In the past decade, daycare costs have risen about 36%. A recent Labor Department analysis found that a 10% increase in the median price of child care is associated with a 1% decrease in the maternal workforce.

Mothers without a four-year degree — who tend to earn less and lack work-from-home or PTO flexibility — are the most impacted.

THE RESEARCH
Just two years ago, 13% of young children in the US had a parent quit, change, or refuse a job due to child care costs.

“The stay-at-home moms in this country are disproportionately mothers who’ve been pushed out of the workforce because they don’t make enough to make it work financially to pay for child care,” Jessica Calarco, a sociologist at the University of Wisconsin said.
Her research found that around 75% of stay-at-home moms in the US live in households with incomes of less than $50,000 — half have household incomes below $25,000.

AFFORDABILITY CRISIS
When child care arrangements are interrupted, mothers lacking a four-year degree often face days without pay if they cannot work or are forced to leave their jobs entirely, according to an analysis of Census survey data.

“Affordable” child care is defined by the Department of Health and Human Services as costing no more than 7% of a household budget.
- A new analysis shows that on average, US households spend 18.6% of their weekly income on child care.
The Labor Department found that only 50 of the more than 3,000 counties in the US have high enough median household incomes and cheap enough childcare costs to fall under that 7% marker.

📝 BIDEN ADMIN TRIES TO BAN NONCOMPETE CLAUSES

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) narrowly passed a measure to ban nearly all noncompete employment agreements in the US. FTC Chair Lina Khan said the agreements are "robbing people of their economic liberty” and the new rule will allow "higher wages and better working conditions.” The FTC voted 3-2 along party lines to end them.

How it works: The agreements prevent employees from jumping ship to competitors’ companies, or starting a competing business for a specified amount of time.
- They are used in an array of industries, from health care to hairstyling.
Who will be impacted: The FTC estimates 18% of American workers are bound by noncompete agreements — or nearly 30 million people.
An example: CBS reported that a single father making about $11/hour as a security guard resigned a few weeks after starting when his child care fell through. He took another security job for $15/hour a few months later, but the company terminated his employment after receiving a letter from the man's prior employer saying he had a two-year noncompete agreement.

THE RULE
If the change goes into effect, companies will have to throw out existing noncompete agreements for most employees (except for senior executives). And, future employees will not be able to sign one.

Proponents argue that the rule will give more power to workers. The agency estimates the change could lead to increased wages and benefits for workers by up to $488 billion over a decade.
Opponents: The two commissioners who voted against the rule said they were unnecessary and unlawful, and the FTC was overstepping its authority.

California, North Dakota, and Oklahoma banned noncompete agreements more than 100 years ago, but Congress has not passed national legislation, nor given the FTC explicit authority to do so.

WHAT’S NEXT
The new rule could go into effect in 120 days, but already the US Chamber of Commerce says it will sue to block the measure.

The trade group plans to argue that the rule will “undermine American businesses' ability to remain competitive.”

⏳ SPEED READ

🚨NATION

📌 Two US senators call for Biden to send National Guard to quell anti-Israel protests on college campuses (POLITICO)

📌 Senate advances Ukraine aid, Israel funding and TikTok ban (NBC NEWS)

📌 Supreme Court appears to favor Starbucks in case on union organizing protections (PBS)

📌 Judge reprimands Trump lawyer but holds off on gag order ruling (GUARDIAN)

📌 Mistrial declared in case of Arizona rancher accused of fatally shooting Mexican migrant near border (CBS NEWS)

🌎 AROUND THE WORLD

📌 A look into the rise — or fall — in world leaders’ job approval ratings across the globe (GALLUP)

📌 Grindr facing UK data lawsuit for allegedly sharing users' HIV status with ad firm (GUARDIAN)

📌 Massive floods threaten tens of millions as intense rains batter southern China (CNN)

📌 Musk criticizes Australian court 'censorship' of video of terror attack on X (REUTERS)

📱BUSINESS, SCIENCE & TECH

📌 U.S. is just 10% of global EV market, new report shows (AXIOS)

📌 ByteDance, TikTok shelled out $7 million on lobbying and ads to combat potential U.S. ban (CBNC)

📌 Apple reportedly cuts Vision Pro production due to low demand (THE VERGE)

📌 Luxury handbag designer sentenced to prison after smuggling bags made out of protected species into U.S. (NBC NEWS)

🎬 SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT

📌 Latin music revenue surpasses $1 Billion for second consecutive year (BILLBOARD)

📌 Megan Thee Stallion accused of harassment by cameraman who said he was forced to watch her have sex (NBC NEWS)

📌 Alec Baldwin’s scuffle with anti-Israel agitator (NY POST)

📌 Prince Louis photo released to mark sixth birthday (CNN)

📌 ‘Tortured Poets Department’ breaks record for weekly vinyl sales in just three days, as Taylor Swift sells 700,000 LPs over a weekend (VARIETY)

🗓 ON THIS DAY: APRIL 24

1980: A failed military operation launched by President Carter to rescue the 52 American hostages held in Iran resulted in the deaths of eight US servicemen. The hostages remained for 270 more days.
1990: Space Shuttle Discovery launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, carrying the $1.5 billion Hubble Space Telescope.
1996: The WNBA was founded.
1997: On ‘Seinfeld,’ George’s new girlfriend uses ‘yada yada yada’ to shorten her stories.