Monica Nickelsburg
Labor & Economy Reporter
About
Monica Nickelsburg is an economy reporter covering labor issues, the changing nature of work, the rise and fall of industries, technology trends, and workplace equity. She has extensive experience covering Amazon, Microsoft, and other major players re-shaping the Seattle region.
Monica spent six years covering the intersection of technology and public policy as GeekWire’s civic editor. As a freelancer, she’s covered food and sustainability for The Food and Environment Reporting Network, Civil Eats, Grist, and others. Before moving to Seattle, Monica worked as a digital producer for The Week and interned for NBC, The Daily Beast, and Forbes. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from New York University in Journalism and History.
Location: Seattle
Languages Spoken: English
Pronouns: she/her
Podcasts
Stories
-
Business
Washington adopts new program to help businesses become employee-owned
Washington lawmakers want to make it easier to form businesses without bosses. They passed a bill Wednesday that provides support and resources for companies seeking to become employee-owned.
-
Business
What workers want: How industries hollowed out by the pandemic are getting folks back
We’ve all seen the help wanted signs, had slow service at our favorite restaurant, or maybe a long wait in the ER. The markers of the Great Resignation are inescapable. Nearly 100 million workers quit their jobs in the past two years. Now, employers are trying to figure out how to get them back. KUOW talked to hiring managers and workers in some of the industries hit hardest by the pandemic about what it takes to get folks back to work.
-
Government
Washington to adopt nation-leading family and medical leave for Uber drivers
Washington is poised to become the first state in the nation to mandate paid family and medical leave and unemployment benefits for Uber and Lyft drivers.
-
Business
Why is it so hard to unionize Amazon?
It’s been a year since the first-ever successful union election at an Amazon facility, a milestone many believed would herald a labor movement at the Seattle-based tech giant. But rather than igniting a blaze of unionization, the labor movement at Amazon may be sputtering out.
-
Government
Howard Schultz grilled at Senate hearing over Starbucks' 'aggressive union busting'
Howard Schultz’s morning coffee came with a shot of reproach today, as the former Starbucks CEO testified before the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.
-
Government
Seattle mandates paid sick time for food delivery drivers
Seattle’s food delivery drivers will be eligible for paid time off when they get sick or need to deal with other safety related issues under a plan approved Tuesday by the City Council.
-
Business
As CEO steps down, Starbucks employees strike
On Monday, as Howard Schultz stepped down as interim CEO of Starbucks, he sent a memo to leadership at Starbucks. It reads, in part: “As I step away, I leave you all as the stewards, in service of all of our partners. They are the heart and soul of our company — the living embodiment of human connection.” Today, “partners” — aka store baristas — at 100 Starbucks cafes are on strike.
-
Business
Amazon cuts another 9,000 jobs signaling new era for the company
Amazon delivered another dose of uncertainty to employees Monday morning: CEO Andy Jassy announced another 9,000 jobs will be eliminated in the coming weeks, making for a total of 27,000 cuts by the company so far this year.
-
Government
Seattle moves to mandate paid sick time for food delivery drivers
The workers who deliver your takeout and groceries could soon be guaranteed paid sick time in Seattle.
-
Business
Amazon taps brakes on HQ2
Amazon is postponing construction on a key part of its big office complex in the DC area. HQ2 was originally designed to house 25,000 employees, but now it’s unclear when Amazon will meet its hiring goal.