Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not? - October 25, 2019

HOT

Newport Hosting Jennifer Lawrence's Wedding

Jennifer Lawrence could have held her wedding anywhere in the world and she chose Newport.

Lawrence continues to be one of the most bankable Hollywood actresses -- in the past two-plus years she has earned more than $50 million.

The impact on Newport and Rhode Island's reputation was 'priceless."

For days, Lawrence's Newport wedding was the biggest story not just on celebrity websites -- it was featured prominently by at least a dozen of the top fifteen news websites nationally and globally. 

Coverage of Carolyn Rafaelian's recently renovated Belcourt of Newport was front and center in the media frenzy of the biggest celebrity event of the season. 

The public relations value to Newport, of having the world follow the star-studded wedding of an A-list actress, who could have gotten married absolutely anywhere? 

"Honestly, it's worth millions. But in actuality, it's priceless," Evan Smith, President and CEO of Discover Newport, told GoLocalProv.com in an interview on Monday. 

Alex and Ani CEO Rafaelian called the global amount of attention "simply amazing."

"I'm thrilled," she told GoLocal. "Newport has never looked and had a better vibe since its early days. It is exactly what Newport deserves."

Photo: CC: Mingle MediaTV derivative work: Tabercil (talk)

HOT

The Legacy of John Chafee

It is highly unlikely that anyone will have the same impact on Rhode Island and the country as John Chafee.

Just look around the state -- many of our most prized places were saved or enhanced by Chafee.

But, the spirit is a guide and a reminder that great things can be done with vision and perseverance. 

READ THE GOLOCAL EDITORIAL HERE

HOT

Patriots' Quarterbacks

This season, the last three New England Patriots to start a regular-season game have the following records:

Tom Brady 7-0

Jimmy Garrapolo 6-0

Jacoby Brissett 4-2

Combined:17-2

HOT

At Least We Don't Have WeWorks

The real estate unicorn was worth over $40 billion a month ago.

Now, they are worth less than $8 billion. 

They wanted to come to Rhode Island and didn't get a warm welcome.

Sometimes, it is the deal you don't do.

NOT

Big Executive Salaries, Big Cutbacks to Low Wage Workers

Newspaper corporation GateHouse Media — owner of the Providence Journal and Newport Daily News —  is seeking to cut overtime pay for their workers.

Governor Gina Raimondo’s administration has drafted an exemption to the “premium pay” requirement that requires that workers in Rhode Island who work on Sundays and holidays are paid time-and-a-half.

According to many who testified at the Rhode Island Department of Labor’s recent hearing to the proposed exemption, most of the production workers impacted earn between $12.50 and $14 per hour. 

At the hearing, Dave Robbins of the Teamsters Local 251 testified, “The minimum wage rate when GateHouse came in was $14 and change an hour - they implemented $12.50 for new employees. The company refused to hire any [new] full-time employees. The only full-time employees are employees hired before GateHouse. The company has created a part-time workforce with no vacation pay, no bereavement pay.”

If the exemption is granted to the newspaper, production workers who are new hires will make just $500 a week -- $26,000 annually -- for working full-time including time over weekends and holidays in a week. 

As Robbins pointed out, however, the Journal has not hired full-time production workers since GateHouse took over -- so a 40-hour workweek would likely be a non-starter for new workers. 

“Every time we ask them is the company making money, the answer is ‘yes.’ We asked if this was an issue of affordability -- they said it wasn't if they could afford it or not. They're exploiting workers, and it's a shame. They have no place asking for this favor,” added Robbins at the hearing. 

Workers vs. Management

While the company is seeking to cut overtime costs, top executives at GateHouse earn millions. In recent years, Kirk Davis the CEO of GateHouse has been paid upwards of $1.7 million in compensation annually. According to one union website that tracks the compensation of CEOs, Kirk’s pay is 42 higher than the average pay of GateHouse.

The attorney for GateHouse, Mark Freel of the law firm Locke Lord, argued at the hearing that the cost of the overtime is prohibited, “The Journal and Newport Daily News publish 7 days a week. Every workday is like another -- newspapers are sold daily like bread. The requirement on Sunday premium pay — that costs in the range of $300K a year in premium pay.”

“Print journalism is already operating in a financially challenging environment — daily newspapers are trying to survive,” added Freel.

John Hill, who has headed the Providence Newspaper Guild over the past few years and is now a special assistant to the union, challenged the need for the cuts.

“We only know about the bonuses [at GateHouse] for the highest execs — there [is not information] for the bonuses just below. There is clearly money available. [Their request] is not to correct a competitive disadvantage — the GateHouse chain wants to make more money at the expense of the people who work for it,” said Hill, now a retired reporter for the Providence Journal. He took one of the paper's recent buyouts. Under GateHouse, dozens of jobs have been slashed in the newsroom -- today the number of news reporters have been cut to about 15.

NOT

Rhode Island's Education System

Ladies and gentlemen, start your excuses. 

The new RICAS scores are in, and from Barrington to Central Falls Rhode Island's scores on the RICAS are underwhelming and inferior.  A majority of students are not meeting or exceeding expectations. 

So get the excuses started:

It's not the (kids/teachers/parents/administrators) fault.

It won't be fixed overnight.

The dog ate everyone's homework.

The new commissioner just got here.

We just put the pieces in place to begin to make progress.

The sun was in every kid's eyes when they took the exam.

Massachusetts has had twenty years of taking these tests.

The students missed that day they covered that material.

We don't have enough bi-lingual, left-handed teachers who know how to yodel.

How about this -- the scores are an indicator of the lack of leadership, passion or energy to dramatically improve Rhode Island's public schools.

Check out the scores.

NOT

Rhode Island College Football Teams

Brown University 1-4

University of Rhode Island 1-6

Bryant University 2-6

Combined: 4-16

Two of the 4 wins (and two of the losses obviously) are when they played head-to-head.

NOT

The Parallel Realities of Gina Raimondo

This week Governor Raimondo was invited to speak at Fortune Magazine’s “Most Powerful Women Summit."

According to the publication, “Started as a list, FORTUNE MPW has evolved into the world’s most extraordinary leadership community, convening the preeminent women in business—along with select leaders in government, philanthropy, education and the arts—for wide-ranging conversations that inspire and deliver practical advice.”

The speaking engagement invite came on the heels of Raimondo being named the “least popular governor” in the country according to the latest Morning Consult survey.