Let's catch up ...
Can Arianna Huffington Save Uber?, NPR
Uber is in crisis. This week the president resigned , after just six months on the job. Morale has been shaken following a damning account of sexual harassment . The board of directors is so concerned about the CEO's ability to lead, they're looking for a No. 2 to help steer the company.
And now — in a curious plot twist — media mogul Arianna Huffington is emerging as chief of Uber's campaign for "culture change."
The company decided to hold a conference call on Tuesday with reporters.
Huffington, who joined the board of Uber almost a year ago, led the call and explained at the outset that the purpose was "not to create yet more headlines." Read more .
Marijuana Industry Presses Ahead in California's Wine Country , New York Times
In the heart of Northern California's wine country, a civil engineer turned marijuana entrepreneur is adding a new dimension to the art of matching fine wines with gourmet food: cannabis and wine pairing dinners.
Sam Edwards, co-founder of the Sonoma Cannabis Company , charges diners $100 to $150 for a meal that experiments with everything from marijuana-leaf pesto sauce to sniffs of cannabis flowers paired with sips of a crisp Russian River chardonnay.
"It accentuates the intensity of your palate," Mr. Edwards, 30, said of the dinners, one of which was held recently at a winery with sweeping views of the Sonoma vineyards. "We are seeing what works and what flavors are coming out." Read more.
Going From Marginalized to Welcomed in the Workplace , New York Times
Employment laws protecting transgender people are in place in 19 states and the District of Columbia, along with 200 cities and counties. And the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission interprets Title VII of the Civil Rights Act as prohibiting discrimination on the basis of transgender identity. Federal civilian employees have additional protections. Yet 30 percent of transgender workers nationwide have been fired or denied a promotion, according to the 2015 United States Transgender Survey . Transgender Americans are three times more likely to be unemployed and twice as likely to live in poverty as the general population, according to the survey, which was conducted by the National Center for Transgender Equality .
Ms. Mendelsohn, now 64, saw a potential fix for these problems. She knew that she and others in the restaurant industry were struggling to find reliable workers and that they were overlooking the transgender demographic.
In California, 218,400 adults identify as transgender, and nationwide the figure is 1.4 million, according to a study by the Williams Institute at the U.C.L.A. School of Law. "We can't afford not to look to this new pool of employment that can really help us," Ms. Mendelsohn said. Read more .
Inside MAC's Hayes Valley boutique
(via Yelp)
San Francisco-Based Clothier Sues Ivanka Trump's Brand, Citing Unfair Competition,
Hoodline
As the Washington Post reported Tuesday, San Francisco-based clothing retailer Modern Appealing Clothing (MAC) has filed a class-action lawsuit against Ivanka Trump's apparel business, citing unfair competition.
The family-owned boutique, which has two stores in Hayes Valley and Dogpatch, has been in business in San Francisco for nearly 40 years. It's seeking a court order forbidding Ivanka Trump's brand from "continuing to compete unfairly with [MAC] in the women's clothing and accessories business in California." Read more .
