The New Look of the Labor Beat

Once considered a marquee assignment, the labor beat spent years on the decline. Over the past decade, however, the beat has bounced back to cover everything from how Uber treats its workers to the #MeToo movement to the lack of affordable child care. Fueled by the Great Recession, the rise of digital media, and the pandemic, today’s labor beat tackles a different set of questions from its union-centric predecessor: Will many white-collar workers never return to the office? Will pandemic-battered workers press for workplace safety? And will the Great Resignation cause American corporations to treat their workers far better?