CNNPolitics (21.12.2020) Congress is on the verge of passing a far-reaching $900 billion Covid relief package that promises to accelerate vaccine distribution and deliver much-needed aid to small businesses hit hard by the pandemic, Americans who have lost their jobs during the economic upheaval and health care workers on the front lines of the crisis.

NBER (October 2020) This working paper examine trends in employment, earnings, and incomes over the last two decades in the United States, and how the safety net has responded to changing fortunes, including the shutdown of the economy in response to the Covid-19 Pandemic. The U.S. safety net is a patchwork of different programs providing in-kind as well as cash benefits and had many holes prior to the Pandemic. In addition, few of the programs are designed explicitly as automatic stabilizers.

The Guardian (11.11.2020) Ballot measure exempting ride-sharing companies from treating drivers as employees could serve as model for future laws

yahoo.com (04.11.2020) The policy will go into effect in 2024 and will give workers 12 weeks of paid leave that will be funded through a payroll tax. An additional 4 weeks of leave would be available to parents who experience pregnancy or childbirth complications. An estimated 2.6 million Colorado workers will have access to leave, according to the campaign’s website. Self-employed workers will be eligible, too. Workers will get up to 90% of their pay during their leave, up to the maximum weekly benefit of $1,100 that will be adjusted based on the state average weekly wage.

The Washington Post (05.11.2020) Gig economy workers were pushed to the brink. It led to a historic confrontation over the future of the business model. The state ballot measure, Proposition 22, will make drivers independent contractors according to California law. That supersedes a new law, known as A.B. 5, intended to grant drivers full employment, including minimum wage protections, health care and such benefits as unemployment and sick leave.

The Government Accountability Office has found that most organizations voluntarily agreed to adopt the National Institute of Standards and Technology's cybersecurity framework but their overseeing agencies are yet to develop ways to ensure NIST compliance.

This publication describes a voluntary risk management framework ("the Framework") that consists of standards, guidelines, and best practices to manage cybersecurity-related risk. The Framework's prioritized, flexible, and cost-effective approach helps to promote the protection and resilience of critical infrastructure and other sectors important to the economy and national security.