Worcester Business Journal

28 Worcester Business Journal • March 2, 2015 www.wbjournal.com F our crippling snowstorms in less than a month have led to a breakdown of the MBTA system, some of which extends to Central Massachusetts. The T's problems amid the extreme cold and heavy snow forced commuters to find other ways to get to work, and the general manager announced her resignation. In our Flash Poll for the week of Feb. 16, just over half of voters said the top priority in fixing the system involves money. What's the first thing that should be done to fix the MBTA's problems? Does fixing the T begin with money? Best Advertising Agency Best Web Design Firm Proud Winner of Two 2015 Best of Business Awards COMMENTS: Join the WBJ's LinkedIn discussion group by scanning the code to the left on your smartphone. To scan the code, you need the NeoReader. Visit get.neoreader.com to download it onto your phone. Want to participate in the conversation? D espite the restrictions it would place on employers, most voters in last week's poll like a new bill before the state legislature that takes aim at the wage gap between men and women. According to a report in The Boston Globe, the bill would prohibit employers from seeking job candidates' salary histories, require companies to disclose an advertised position's minimum pay, and permit employees to discuss their salaries openly. Bill sponsors say such practices would help reduce the wage gap by addressing the problem before a candidate is interviewed. Because women's earnings are historically lower than men's, they argue, revealing their salaries puts them at a disadvantage, the Globe report said. What do you think of the bill intended to narrow the gender wage gap? Poll finds majority support for gender pay equity bill COMMENTS: F L A S H P O L L T A L K B A C K Invest in a capital spending plan to upgrade outdated equipment 44% "Put the entity into receivership and start over. Too many legacy issues." "Pay needs to be apples to apples. There are too many differences to a one-size-fits-all approach. Experience should be the driver of salaries …" 4% Gain concessions from unions 19% UNEMPLOYMENT RATE: KEEP IT OR DITCH IT? Both the state and nation saw unemployment fall steadily in 2014, with the U.S. rate ending the year at 5.6 percent. But that statistic's accuracy as a reflection of the health of the job market is continually being called into question. We opened that topic up for debate on LinkedIn last month. We weren't disappointed with the response. "I have heard that actual numbers may be as high as 20 percent. There are a lot of people … that have had unemployment run out and I am willing to bet the number of young adults sitting at home in their parents' house is off the charts." Peter Kovago "There are plenty of underemployed that throw off the count." John Agoglia "Perhaps so many people are under-employed because their skills are simply no longer valued (and I mean real value as in making money, no pretend value)." Jim Pond "There should be a complete report on the state of the … MBTA to ensure the leadership knows which issues are the biggest or to completely understand the scope of the hardware and systems problems." Suspend expansion plans 19% 2% Increase state funding It's the right thing to do. 53% Other "You can't grow until you can take care of what you have." Other 10% Raise fares 6% It goes to far. 25% I like the intent but not what this bill calls for. 18% "Would be OK with minimum pay, but restricting an employer's ability to ask for payroll history is insane." "Keep the government out of it."

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