Amazon accused of violating WA’s ban on noncompete agreements
Washington banned noncompete agreements for workers who make less than $100,000 annually in 2020. The Legislature then passed an amendment this year to strengthen enforcement of its ban and bring the threshold for exemption to a roughly $120,000 annual salary. The lawsuit filed in King County Superior Court this month accuses Amazon of tucking a noncompete agreement into its offer letter for workers in its warehouses and retail stores. In a statement this week, the company disputed the allegations in the case and denied that its policies broke Washington law. Continue reading at the Seattle Times. (Ken Lambert)
This normally quiet Cascades volcano has been trembling. Why scientists say you shouldn’t worry.
Seismically, Mount Adams, located in southern Washington state, is relatively calm. So the alert earlier this month by the USGS that there has been a flurry of earthquakes around Adams got some attention from volcano watchers. The recent earthquakes have been small — ranging from magnitudes of 0.9 to 2.0 — but the federal government has only one seismometer in the vicinity of Mount Adams, the second-tallest volcano in Washington state, so it is difficult to get precise information about their locations and depths. The agency is using the recent rumblings as an opportunity to learn more about this sometimes overlooked volcano. Continue reading at the Washington Post. (Sofia Jaramillo)
70% of Washington public school students now have access to free meals
Nearly 800,000 kids are eating free meals in school after the Legislature expanded access — but the state will need to come up with more money if it wants to continue the program. That’s according to the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, which announced on Tuesday that 70% of Washington’s kids now have access to school meals at no cost to students or families. But the state underestimated how many students would participate — leading Superintendent Chris Reykdal to request an additional $17.6 million in the 2025-2027 budget cycle to continue feeding this many kids. Continue reading at the WA State Standard. (Getty Images)
Bellingham Herald
Avian flu is killing chickens at Pasco-area poultry operation. More being euthanized
It’s not just you. Washington reported more spam calls than almost any state, study says
How bad is WA’s whooping cough outbreak? Cases have reached highest levels since 2015
Capital Press
THE YEAR OF THE WILDFIRE: 30,000 firefighters do battle across 7 million acres of the West
Editorial: EPA comes up short, again
Columbian
Vancouver looks at cuts to police, fire, roads and community services to close $43M budget deficit
Everett Herald
Mukilteo council members fire back at mayor’s budget plan
The Inlander
With proper management techniques, cattle herds can help increase plant biodiversity and soil health
Olympia sees heavy metals as a problem for medical marijuana. So why isn’t it the same for the recreational market?
International Examiner
City Council designates Chinatown-ID a drug banishment zone, under controversial ordinance
News Tribune
LGBTQ youth center accused Pierce County AIDS group of stealing $200K. Lawsuit has settled
Peninsula Daily News
Hood Canal bridge to receive $51M for repairs
Puget Sound Business Journal
Boeing to raise up to $25B to stave off cash crunch
Seattle’s most prominent industry is shrinking fast
Amazon backs nuclear power project near Tri-Cities
Seattle Times
Amazon scores another victory in WA warehouse safety trial
Amazon accused of violating WA’s ban on noncompete agreements
South Seattle Emerald
A Month Into Strike, Boeing Employees Continue to Press for Company Change — and Accountability
Spokesman Review
Westboro Baptist Church protest over transgender athlete forces East Valley to end school early Friday
Opinion: Washington’s supply chain at risk with EV mandates
Tri-City Herald
Tri-Cities is new home to a Seattle startup’s $30M fusion energy research outpost
Richland schools make cuts, asks teachers to limit supplies as ‘financial hardship’ looms
Amazon’s huge investment in small modular nuclear reactors in Eastern WA and beyond
Washington Post
Senate report: How private equity ‘gutted’ dozens of U.S. hospitals
As hospitals get bigger, medical debt is harder for patients to shake
This normally quiet Cascades volcano has been trembling. Should we worry?
WA State Standard
70% of Washington public school students now have access to free meals (Riccelli)
Broadcast
KING 5 TV (NBC)
City of Tacoma stops glass recycling because of low demand
Leader of Washington’s child welfare agency won’t seek reappointment
KIRO 7 TV (CBS)
Sound Transit police gear up with new bike patrol
Local CenturyLink customers dealing with weeks-long outages
Seattle Children’s opens Psychiatric Urgent Care Clinic for struggling kids and teens
KUOW Public Radio
SPD’s on track to exit consent decree despite flawed police contract, federal judge says
KXLY (ABC)
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Downtown billboard criticizes Spokane Mayor Brown for lack of emergency shelter plan
Web
Cascadia Daily News
Road to Artist Point closed for the winter
Group of women inspire next generation to donate to Whatcom nonprofits
MyNorthwest
Washington restaurants’ profits plummeting, solutions are scarce
TSA at SEA Airport begins using new technology to verify travelers’ identities
The Urbanist
Updated Seattle Growth Plan adds five neighborhood anchors, bigger fourplexes
Washington Observer
Remember the constitutional sheriff of Klickitat County?
West Seattle Blog
Ten ‘neighborhood centers’ proposed for West Seattle, and other changes in newly unveiled zoning maps