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| Presented By General Motors |
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| Axios What's Next |
| By Jennifer A. Kingson and Joann Muller · Apr 11, 2022 |
| Did you know? It's National Pet Day! - Please scroll down for a very special message from Jennifer's cat, Wilson, and Joann's dog, Gus.
- See something cool or interesting that speaks to the way we live, work, play and get around? Take a picture and send it to us at whatsnext@axios.com.
Today's Smart Brevity count: 1,149 words ... 4.5 minutes. |
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| 1 big thing: California could blaze a path with a 4-day workweek |
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| Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios |
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| The California Legislature is considering a bill that would reduce the workweek to four days for companies with more than 500 employees, Jennifer A. Kingson writes. Why it matters: Though the legislation is a long shot, calls to shorten the workweek — a perennial fantasy for cube dwellers, factory workers and others — have grown louder and more prevalent since the pandemic showed us what's possible in terms of alternative job arrangements. - On the federal level, Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.) introduced the 32-Hour Workweek Act last July, joined by other House progressives.
- In the private sector, companies from Toshiba to Shake Shack, Kickstarter and Shopify have been giving the four-day workweek a go. (Here's a list of some companies trying it.)
- A nonprofit called 4 Day Week Global is trying to propagate the practice. "This year, 38 companies in the U.S. and Canada are taking part in the program, with most running from April 1 through September," per CNBC.
Driving the news: California's AB2932 "would change the definition of a workweek from the current 40 hours to 32 hours for companies with more than 500 employees, and require overtime pay for making employees work longer than four full days a week," the San Francisco Chronicle reports. - Proponents say it will boost worker productivity, work/life balance and mental and physical health.
- Detractors say it'll be a financial disaster, with companies having to fork up for more overtime and hire more people.
- Technically, companies could still make people report to work five days a week, but they would have to pay them extra after 32 hours on the clock.
The big picture: The four-day workweek has been catching on, although there are clearly places and settings where it will never fly. Read the full story. |
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| 2. Polar science threatens to crack amid Russia's war in Ukraine |
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| Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios |
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| Crucial scientific projects in the Arctic are in limbo — and their progress is under threat — as Russia becomes more isolated from the world for its invasion of Ukraine, write Axios' Andrew Freedman and Alison Snyder. Why it matters: These research collaborations provide key insights about the effects of climate change, the health of the oceans and geology — and they underpin cooperation among the U.S., Russia and others in the geopolitical hotspots of the Arctic and Antarctica. Driving the news: Scientific projects and collaborations are on hold around the world as sanctions and the severing of ties with Russian research institutions prevent scientists in the U.S., Europe and elsewhere from working with their colleagues and students in Russia. - The war's effects are being felt acutely by scientists who work in the Arctic, where the summer research season is about to get underway.
- Last week's Arctic Observing Summit of international scientists monitoring how climate change is affecting the Arctic was closed to researchers from Russian institutions and organizations, Hakai reports.
- Last month, seven of the eight members of the Arctic Council, whose purview includes research cooperation around sustainable development and environmental protection of the Arctic, paused all activities with Russia, the council's eighth member and current chair.
Details: About 53% of the Arctic Ocean coastline belongs to Russia. Access alone to that land and sea makes the country a key partner for international research on biology, ecology and conservation. Read the rest. |
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| 3. Families grapple with baby formula shortages |
 Data: Datasembly; Chart: Kavya Beheraj/Axios Parents and caregivers looking for baby formula are facing increasingly dire shortages owing to supply chain challenges and a massive recall, writes Nathan Bomey of Axios Closer. - 29% of baby formula inventory was out of stock nationally the week of March 13, up from 18% when the year started and 3% a year earlier, according to data analyzed for Axios by consumer product data analytics firm Datasembly.
Why it matters: About 3 in 4 babies are fed formula by 6 months old as a complete or partial substitute for human milk. What they're saying: "The out-of-stocks we're seeing here are moving very quickly and affecting many shoppers," Datasembly CEO Ben Reich tells Axios. Between the lines: Production problems or distribution issues — depending on whom you ask — started the shortages in 2021. But a sweeping recall of Abbott Nutrition products has exacerbated the situation. - The FDA last week warned Americans not to use recalled Similac, Alimentum or EleCare powdered infant formulas made at Abbott's Sturgis, Michigan, plant after the agency found evidence of a food-borne pathogen there.
- At least four babies have reportedly gotten ill after they consumed the products, the FDA says.
Read the full story. |
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| A message from General Motors |
| Reinventing how we power the wheel |
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| We're driving toward a new era of mobility with 30 electric vehicles globally by 2025. As we bring the world into an all-electric future, there'll soon be an EV for everyone on a scale previously unseen. Learn more. |
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| 4. American Airlines offers 'bus-as-flight' connections |
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| American Airlines will take passengers from airport to airport in the Philadelphia area on buses. Photo courtesy of American Airlines |
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| American Airlines is about to start moving people at much lower altitudes, writes Nathan Bomey of Axios Closer. Driving the news: The airline says it will offer bus connections to several smaller regional destinations from its Philadelphia hub. - Transportation service Landline will provide 50- to 70-mile rides to and from airports in Allentown/Bethlehem and Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania, and Atlantic City, New Jersey.
The big picture: Airlines are facing pilot shortages and soaring prices for jet fuel, compounding logistical and economic challenges that have seen the industry cut many flights from pre-pandemic schedules. - Only around 80% of flights offered in 2019 were still operating in 2021, the Washington Post reported.
- These trends have taken an outsized toll on smaller regional airports, as airlines focus their resources on their most profitable routes (the ones with the most people in seats).
How it works: American Airlines passengers landing at the Philadelphia airport with a connecting bus will de-board, enter the terminal and find the gate where their bus is set to depart. - Think about it as a "bus-as-flight connection," Airline Weekly reported.
Of note: Other airlines have already instituted the system. - United Airlines has been using buses to connect passengers to regional locations from its Denver hub since last year.
Share this story. |
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| 5. What we're reading |
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| A train at the MacArthur BART station in Oakland, Calif. Photo: Liz Hafalia/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images |
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| BART is adopting out old cars. Here's what people are doing with them (San Francisco Chronicle) - New lives for decommissioned Bay Area Rapid Transit trains include as a video game arcade near the MacArthur BART station, a sports bar for the Oakland A's ballpark, and an "eco-friendly solar-powered rental guest home in the Sierra foothills."
A bookstore revival channels nostalgia for big box chains (Bloomberg CityLab) - Bookstores have been disappearing from malls and Main Streets for decades, but now there's a reversal of that trend — thanks in part to the popularity of book recommendations on TikTok and the pandemic-inspired revival of reading as a pastime.
Floating avatars and mini-golf tournaments: Best practices for your company VR retreat (Protocol) - Instead of gathering people in person for team-building activities at a resort, companies like Trello are holding corporate retreats in virtual reality, with employees donning headsets to play games. VR golf, anyone?
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| 6. Pause for pets |
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| Joann's dog, Gus, hails from the Michigan Humane Society; Jennifer's cat, Wilson, began life in a shelter on Long Island. |
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| Gus the dog and Wilson the cat say: In honor of National Pet Day, please ask one of your animal-loving friends to sign up for the What's Next newsletter — here. |
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| A message from General Motors |
| Reinventing how we power the wheel |
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| We're driving toward a new era of mobility with 30 electric vehicles globally by 2025. As we bring the world into an all-electric future, there'll soon be an EV for everyone on a scale previously unseen. Learn more. |
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| 📬 Invite your friends to sign up here to get their daily essentials — Axios AM, PM and Finish Line. |
 | It's called Smart Brevity®. Over 200 orgs use it — in a tool called Axios HQ — to drive productivity with clearer workplace communications. | | |
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