The AI nurse will see you now 🧑‍⚕️

Hey there! Hannah here with some exciting news. Maryland’s pay transparency bill, which we recently testified in support of, is awaiting signature from Governor Moore! 🙌

Assuming Moore signs, Maryland would be the latest state to pass pay transparency laws, joining New York, California, Colorado, Hawaii, and several others. 

We’ll let you know when it’s official. And if you’re unsure whether your state already has pay transparency laws in place, our interactive map has your answer.

 1   UPS (and its employees) are seeing major ROI from childcare benefits 📈

$13 billion. That’s how much US companies lose each year from employees who leave work early, call out unexpectedly, or quit altogether because they don’t have reliable childcare.  

For UPS, enough was enough. In 2022, the company launched a pilot program that offered emergency on-site childcare at one of its California warehouses to see if it’d positively affect its bottom line. (Spoiler: It did.) 

The impact was immediate. For hourly workers, retention skyrocketed from 69% to 96%—a huge win for UPS, which needed to retain just 1% of employees to cover the cost of childcare benefits. 

Since then, the program has spread to other states. But on-site childcare isn’t just good for the company’s ROI—it has the power to transform workers’ lives: 

• When mothers (who take on the majority of childcare duties) don’t have to skip a shift every time childcare falls through, they earn an extra $79,000 over their lifetime, per the First Five Years Fund. 

• And when employees don’t need to leave work early or worry about their child’s safety, they can take on more work—opening up more career advancement opportunities (hello, promotion).  

Companies like UPS have seen the impact of this move on both employees and employers. Yet somehow, fewer than 6% of companies offer childcare support near the office. 

This is your reminder: You are allowed to propose this as a benefit to your boss—because if it impacts their bottom line, chances are they’ll be listening. 

 2   Sega becomes the first gaming company to ratify a union contract 👾

The video game industry is leveling up. Sega of America employees secured a union contract last Tuesday that’ll boost their pay and offer several other game-changing benefits, per Bloomberg.

This is major. It’s the first-of-its-kind union contract at a major US gaming company, which is huge for an industry rife with layoffs (over 6,000 employees were let go in the first month of 2024 alone). 

The contract has been a year in the making and covers 150 Sega employees. So, what’s inside? 

• Minimum yearly pay increases of 4% in 2024, 3% in 2025, and 2.4% in 2026. 

• Notifications ahead of job cuts and severance pay for permanent layoffs. 

• Guaranteed credit for any video games employees contribute to. 

But wait! There’s more. The contract also includes a more flexible hybrid work model, an annual bonus plan, retirement benefits, health insurance, paid travel expenses, and advanced notice if Sega plans on using AI at the workplace. 

Sega’s move is proof that employees of all industries—even those that traditionally don’t unionize—hold real power when they band together. Although the video game industry has a long way to go, Sega’s contract sets the stage for better things to come. 

 3   Nvidia introduces AI nurses that treat patients for $9 an hour 🏥

More Black Mirror than Grey’s Anatomy. Nvidia has teamed up with startup Hippocratic to provide AI-powered “nurses” that can help with a range of non-diagnostic care, from pre-op colonoscopies to insulin check-ups. 

The cost? Just $9 an hour for virtual appointments. Hippocratic claims it's far cheaper than human nurses who can cost up to $90 an hour—even suggesting it could help ease the nationwide nurse shortage. 

But there are a few holes in Hippocratic’s pitch: 

• The average hourly rate for a registered nurse in 2022 was $38.74, per the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Once news outlets pointed this out, it seems Hippocratic removed the $90 per hour claim from its website. 

• 60% of Americans are uncomfortable with a healthcare provider relying on AI to diagnose their disease or recommend treatments. 

• The chips (H100 GPU) needed to run Hippocratic’s AI guzzle a lot of power. In fact, a single H100 GPU requires as much power per day as the average American household. 

And last but not least, it doesn’t solve why there’s a nursing shortage in the first place. As Futurism explains: 

Only time will tell how this goes down. Until then, would you want to be treated by an AI nurse?

“I beat a traffic ticket when I was 16. I caught the cop in a lie and made the judge throw down a pen in anger. That’s when I knew: Yeah, I could do this for a living.”  

Today, we’re shining a spotlight on lawyers! 👨‍⚖️ The legal profession spans far and wide, and in our compilation video, you’ll meet attorneys, legislative assistants, and litigators who share their best advice and salaries. 

From lawyers earning $50,000 to $180,000, you’re guaranteed to get the full picture of the field.  

• The Strippers’ Bill of Rights was signed into law in Washington last week. 🙌

• This manager of solution engineers earns $220K a year and had 9 months of maternity leave! 

• How to tell your boss you’re unhappy at work (yes, it’s a conversation you should have). 

• California’s $20 wage bump for fast food employees started on Monday.

• Meet the recruiter with a base salary of $70,000…but pays $3,000 a month for rent in NYC.

Thanks for being here! Before we part ways, here’s a mind-blowing fact (and not in a good way): The average American hasn’t received a raise in three years. Those who have received an average of 3% yearly—which doesn’t cover inflation. 

In short: It’s time to ask for a raise. But how do you go about it? 

We’ve got you. In our latest article, we’ll teach you how to ask for a raise, when to do it, and what to say (plus real-life examples and scripts!). 

Go get ‘em. See you next week!