An unfortunate reality of the workplace is that the “good old boys” system still runs rampant in many industries. Often times women and people of color are overlooked for promotions and raises in favor of their whiter, male colleagues. This allegedly is the case at Port Authority Trans-Hudson (PATH) rail station…
There is nothing more powerful than owning land in the United States. Because of this, the real estate industry has become an extremely lucrative business. For Osei Rubie, it means earning the chance to create a million-dollar company and passing that legacy down to his son.
Rubie is the owner of the National Standard Abstract, a title-insurance firm based in New York City. Together with his son Nadir, Rubie has managed to become one of the few black-owned business enterprises in the area. The firm provides services for real estate transactions including mixed-use, office, amusement parks, hospitals, affordable housing, and faith-based development projects.
The father-and-son team opened their business in 2015 after Rubie encountered a dilemma regarding title insurance after finding out he was required to refinance his home of 14 years. Since the incident, he decided to learn more about the industry and took a job for one of the largest underwriters for title insurance in the country. As of June 2018, the company has reportedly closed a total of $432 million in faith-based and affordable housing development transactions. These deals include the $189 million Archer Green in Jamaica, Queens; the $47 million Regina Pacis Housing Corp. in Gravesend, Brooklyn; and a $42 million project in Harlem.
In addition to 10 years of experience within the industry, Rubie credits his family’s influence for his success; citing his grandfather and his parents were entrepreneurs. By growing up around their family businesses, which included clothing stores, a restaurant, and a toy company, Rubie already had mentors to learn from when it came to embarking on his own business venture.
The real estate firm aims to be the premier provider of title insurance nationally within the next five years. From the work they have done thus far, it looks like they are on track to meet their goal.
Who will be paying for some seniors’ college application fees next year? The “Answer” is Reebok.
Former NBA player Allen Iverson presented a gift to students at his alma mater, Bethel High School, via Reebok. According to Complex, sneaker giant will cover all college application fees to celebrate the latest Reebok “Origins” pack that features two signature Allen Iverson sneakers.
Reebok is covering college application costs for approximately 400 students for Bethel High’s 2021 senior class. “Nothing should limit you from applying to any school you want to consider,” Iverson said via video. “By working with Reebok to cover the application costs of rising seniors at Bethel High, I want the next generation of game-changers to see college as a route to success, whether they want to be an artist or a doctor.”
The students will also receive sneakers.
Our class of 2021 was just informed that Reebok will pay for ALL of their college application fees next year as well as a free pair of kicks!
Read that again…..#reebok#alleniversonlovesBHS pic.twitter.com/kms9dYYyDt— Lee Martin (@AthleticsBethel) March 4, 2020
Not only is Reebok covering Bethel High seniors college application fees, but the sneaker giant is giving other 2021 seniors the same opportunity. The instructions for students are given on the Reebok website.
Iverson is an NBA Hall of Famer who averaged 26.7 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 6.2 assists during his career. He won the 1997 Rookie of the Year Award and was the 2001 regular-season MVP. “The Answer” as he was called, was also an 11-time All-Star and four-time scoring champion.
The featured Iverson sneakers the “Bethel” Answer V and the “Georgetown” Question Mid can be purchased right now on Reebok.com for retail prices of $140–$150.
Black baristas at some of Starbucks airport locations say they are paid less than white baristas and are subjected to other types of discrimination.
The median income for Black baristas at airport Starbucks in the United States is $1.85 less than for white baristas, according to findings by Unite Here, a labor group that reviewed wage data of more than 2,000 Starbucks airport employees from February to October 2019. The group is attempting to organize Starbucks’ airport locations, reported CBS News.
READ MORE: Starbucks regional manager files lawsuit claiming racial discrimination
At some airport stores —like Starbucks inside of George Bush Intercontinental Airport— the wage disparity for Black workers is even greater. Unite Here found that Black baristas here bring in $2.84 less than white baristas.
Further, some Starbucks employees say they are discriminated against because of sexual orientation. A separate study found that many Starbucks workers are impoverished and struggling to survive.
Jay Kelly, a transgender barista who works at Orlando International Airport, told CBS that his boss mocked him in front of customers by referring to him as a “she” instead of as a “he.” Kelly told CBS that after the incident, “I went to the bathroom and cried my eyes out.”
Kelly, 25, said he has worked at Starbucks for three years and makes $11.85 an hour.
“I can’t afford to buy myself any food or bathing or hygiene products. It all goes toward bills and to help my mom out,” he said, adding that he has had to occasionally sleep at the airport because he couldn’t afford the rate of taking a car service home after a late-night shift. Kelly says his shift ends sometimes after the bus he normally hops on stops running for the day.
Starbucks is not buying Unite Here’s claims.
“We do not discriminate against any associate based on race, ethnicity, national origin, LGBTQ status or any other reason,” HMSHost, a food service company that operates Starbucks stores at 27 U.S. airports, said to CBS News. “Our fair treatment policy ensures an open and inclusive environment.”
A spokesperson for Starbucks referred questions to HMSHost, which employs 23,000 workers at airport Starbucks locations across the U.S. and Canada.
HMSHost says the union’s report is misleading.
“Pay rates are not in any way determined by race and ethnicity,” HMSHost said, adding that rates are calculated on an employee’s experience and time with working at Starbucks. Pay rates for union workers are negotiated during the collective bargaining process, HMSHost said.
READ MORE: Black man says he was kicked out of Starbucks because of his race
Plus, the findings survey roughly 12% of HMSHost’s unionized workers and 6% of its total workforce, HMSHost said.
“We are concerned about the well-being of our associates, and we will respond and try and resolve any issues when it is brought to our attention. HMSHost offers good, entry-level jobs that provide a pathway to the workforce for thousands of our associates,” an HMSHost spokesperson sent in an email to CBS News. “Unlike some entry-level jobs, we offer a comprehensive package of benefits, including health insurance, meals while working, paid time off, educational support, training, and professional development opportunities.”
The post Starbucks pays Black workers less than white counterparts, study shows appeared first on TheGrio.
It’s good to give back! This week, Dominique Jones, aka Lil Baby, surprised his old high school in Atlanta, Booker T. Washington High School, by performing at the educational facility. Then he surprised them again by announcing that he would be starting a $150,000 scholarship program for the high school, according to Billboard.
With the support of Amazon Music’s Rap Rotation, Quality Control Music, Wolfpack Global, and Motown Records, the rapper launched the “My Turn” Scholarship fund. “A majority of the students in these neighborhoods, when they have good grades most of them don’t have support. They don’t have a family who can afford to [send them] to a good college or the college they want to go to,” Lil Baby explained. He wants this to be an annual fund.
Officials from Atlanta Public Schools said the first scholarship went to Vachon Raye Jr., who plans on attending Dartmouth College in the fall while playing football there. “For him to give back really [impacted] me,” Raye told WSBTV,
“From the time I left here to now, I’ve had a crazy journey,” the rapper, who left school around the 10th grade, told Billboard. “Just to be able to come back on a positive note and actually touch this ground again and see some of these faces again… I can’t even explain it. I was once in a state where I knew for sure I wasn’t ever coming back here.
“To be able to come, give back and be something, and perform for children, that means everything to me,” he added.
“It’s crazy that these people did amazing things for their time and their people,” Dan Sims, an associate superintendent for Atlanta Public Schools, said of Lil Baby. “To watch these students respond to Lil Baby, their artist—and I love him, too—is just so gratifying. We’re thinking years from now, what will the history say about Booker T. Washington High School. There will be this story about Lil Baby, Dominique Jones, who gave back, started this scholarship fund, attended this school [previously] and gave to the lives of other individuals. That is huge for us.”
“Who knows what seeds were planted today as it relates to not just seeing him as a performer, but as a philanthropist,” Sims added. “I hope [this] puts some positive pressure on other rappers who came from some of these same classrooms and hallways to just give back a little bit.”
