Career and Work

Washington will have the highest state minimum wage in the country on January 1, 2027, at $17.73 an hour. Connecticut ($17.48) and California ($17.40) are right behind it. Washington, D.C. stays higher still at $18.40. The federal minimum wage hasn't moved. It's still $7.25, where it's been since July 2009,…

I owned a second-tier franchise for one year before selling it for a $170,000 loss. That's an expensive way to learn what franchisors don't put in the pitch deck, but it means I know exactly what I'm talking about here. Franchises sell an appealing story: brand recognition, a proven system,…

With a slowing economy, government and private sector reductions in force, and the prospect of a downturn always around the corner, you may get into work one of these days and hear that your position has been made redundant. Are you prepared for this scenario and its likely impact on…

The national unemployment rate was 4.2% in June 2026, and the economy added just 57,000 jobs that month — well below expectations, with leisure and hospitality actually losing jobs while healthcare and professional services kept growing. It's a mixed, uneven labor market, and it makes the question of where the…

Overtime pay in the United States is governed by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), and the core rule hasn't changed in decades: covered, non-exempt employees must be paid time-and-a-half for every hour worked over 40 in a workweek. What has changed for 2026 is the salary level that determines…

No federal law requires your employer to pay you a dime of severance when you're laid off. Only two states — New Jersey and Maine — mandate it at all, and only in specific mass-layoff situations. Everywhere else, severance is 100% a negotiation, which is exactly why so many people…

We've all hit that wall — a stretch where work feels more like a chore than anything close to engaging. Feeling uninterested for a few days is normal. It becomes worth paying attention to when it drags on for weeks and starts showing up in your actual behavior. Here are…