Today the Los Angeles city council voted 13-0 for an ordinance that was widely viewed as an effort to block Walmart's effort to open a grocery store in Chinatown. The only problem? The ordinance won't actually stop the Chinatown location from opening at all. All the necessary permits for the location were already quietly approved at 4:30 pm yesterday. more ›

The Metro board approved a new policy today requiring that 40 percent of the work hours on its major transportation projects go to low-income and other struggling workers. It is the first transit agency that uses federal funds for a targeted hiring policy, according to City News Service. more ›

Occupy Wall Street has beget Occupy L.A. has beget Occupy LAUSD. The movement states "This is a call out to the 99% in the Los Angeles Unified School District. It is time we Reclaim Our Schools from the 1% wealthy." But what does "the man" have to do with huge class sizes, dirty classrooms, empty libraries, fallow gardens and laid off teachers? more ›

It's back to the bargaining table for union leaders and representatives from the three major local grocery store chains, and there will be no strike this week. Over the weekend, a vote by unionized grocery workers yielded a 90% return in favor of authorizing a strike. more ›

The search is on for a pair of suspects from Ventura County serving on a work crew in the Hollywood Hills who broke free and fled. The two men were sentenced to the labor detail for robbery crimes according to a report aired on ABC7. The fleeing pair "were assigned to a brush clearance detail on a fire road near Mulholland Drive and Fryman Canyon Park," reports KTLA. more ›

An estimated 2,500 Kaiser Permanente nurses and staff began a 24-hour strike demanding safe staffing levels for nurses and consequentially better care for patients. The protest began at 6 a.m. Wednesday outside Kaiser L.A. Medical Center on Sunset Boulevard. more ›

It was no deal for the labor groups who rejected a proposed contract deal with the City of Los Angeles, and as a result, yesterday Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa got down to the business of ordering 42 furlough days for various city employees, according to CBS2. The Mayor issued the order verbally during a press conference at City Hall: “I hearby direct all city general managers to immediately initiate furloughs for those employees and bargaining units who failed to ratify the agreement,” declared Villaraigosa. more ›

Hundreds of nurses picketed outside Kaiser Permanente on Sunset, citing unfair labor practices and a lack of adequate staffing regulations. At least 90 percent of the 1,100 unionized nurses signed up for the walkout, a union spokesperson told the AP. more ›

Union workers from the LA County Federation of Labor flew to Madison this morning to join tens of thousands of activists gathered at the Wisconsin state capital to protest Gov. Scott Walker's overreaching efforts to curb union benefits and vanquish its collective bargaining powers. more ›

There was a power pow-wow yesterday involving Governor Jerry Brown, other legislators, and the people behind the proposed Downtown L.A. football stadium, reports the Times, with a goal of proving "the project is politically and financially viable." Already in question is the destruction of a portion of the current LA Convention Center to accommodate the stadium, and the legitimacy of the claims made by AEG and supporters that the venue will boost the local economy. more ›

Thousands of union workers gathered on the south lawn of City Hall yesterday as part of a rally organized by the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, according to the LA Times. Addressing the crowd were several high-profile local politicians, including US Senator Barbara Boxer and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. more ›

A peaceful labor protest that shut down rush hour traffic on a portion of the Sunset Strip Thursday afternoon ended in numerous arrests. It was part of an effort by hotel union workers in 15 cities in the U.S. and Canada to highlight contract disputes with hotel owners. more ›

No details are publicly available until the plan is ratified by union members, but today the City Council took action that reverses this week's earlier decision to cut nearly 1,000 jobs and institute 26 days of furloughs that would help the city fight a $405 million budget shortfall. Instead, the Coalition of L.A. City Unions gave up $78 million in "hard concessions" and will have to contribute an extra .37 percent of paychecks towards the city's pension fund, which will cover the early retirement of some 2,400 employees, according to the LA Times. Although 22,000 employees have membership in this union, other unions may still experience layoffs and furloughs, which could prompt lawsuits. more ›

A study released last week ranks American cities in terms of job growth, and groups the results based on the size of the city. And when it comes to the country's "Large" cities, out of 66, the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale Metro Division ranks a discouraging #56 (and 279 out of all 336 cities nationwide). more ›

Even though she was confirmed by both the Senate and House a few weeks ago, Hilda Solis this morning officially became the Secretary of Labor after she was sworn in, taking the oath-of-office. more ›

“I am confident that Hilda Solis will turn the many challenges we face into many opportunities for the American people. As Secretary, she will continue to promote policies that will invigorate our economy, protect our jobs, and retrain our work force," California Senator Barbara Boxer said today on the confirmation. "She will work for a sustainable energy future, which is going to mean lots of jobs and new technologies. She will ensure safe working conditions. She will enforce fairly the wage and hour laws we have on the books… She will protect against worker discrimination. She will strengthen the middle class." more ›

San Gabriel Valley Congresswoman Hilda Solis is President Barack Obama's choice for Labor secretary. But a republican senator is using a secret hold--more formally known as a senatorial hold--to delay a vote on her confirmation. It's apparently because of her "support for 'card check' legislation aimed at facilitating union organization and another bill regarding pay-discrimination, and for non-responsive answers during her confirmation hearing," the Pasadena Star News reported via the Washington Post. If she's ultimately rejected, a group of hopefuls eyeing her seat are going to be disappointed. more ›

Richard Walker Sault was quite the surprise. Born two days before Christmas in Laguna Hills, he was larger than expected. Much larger. 14 pounds, 2 ounces, which is double the size of average newborns. He was delivered by caesarean section by the hands of two doctors (one was not enough for this big boy) and the family is reported to be in good health. more ›

In a crash site outside Ventura on the 126 Highway (described as looking like a bomb went off by one KNX reporter), one person is dead and four others are injured. more ›

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Until 8 pm Tuesday // Barney’s Beanery // 3rd Street Prominade, Santa Monica // price varies. more ›

It's still in the outline phase, but a new contract has been drawn for striking writers, and may meet with approval as early as Friday. more ›

7:43 The spin is winding down and the media room is beginning to empty. Reporters are putting the finishing touches on their debate articles and the crew is beginning to clean up the bottles and box dinners provided. But the next six days until Super Tuesday will be anything but quiet. Commercials will continue to fill the airwaves, candidates will have events around Southern California and LAist will party as we watch the results. Thanks for tuning in and stay tuned to LAist for all your political coverage. more ›

Photo by kpe II via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr more ›

Photo by Tom Andrews via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr
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Today's "Only in LA" column in the Times checks in with the restaurant to see if the myth still holds. Steve Harvey explains, "The trend supposedly began after some very pregnant women from a birthing class dined there -- and then went into labor. All had ordered the romaine and watercress salad. One theory held that the balsamic vinegar dressing triggered contractions of the uterus." A quick call to Caioti confirmed that ladies looking to get their buns out of their ovens still order up what's called simply "The Salad." They are even offered a journal kept by the restaurant so they can record their visit, and those for whom the so-called miraculous salad works sometimes send in photos of their newborn. more ›

Tis the season - for cookies!!! Cookies are one of the most versatile treats you can make. They are perfect for gift-giving, office parties, dessert, or a quick snack. They please children and grown-ups alike. Most cookie batters freeze well so you can make cookies anytime you feel like it. Cookie recipes are easy to make and hard to screw up. You just need to keep an eye on them so they don't burn.... more ›

Don't know what to get for the gun toting rifleman who has everything? In San Francisco, turning that rifle in to authorities will net you a cool $100 gift card. Eh, you say? OK, how about $200 for AK-47s? I wonder how that conversation might go at home: Honey, where is my gun? Oh, I turned it in sweety, for $100 worth of movie rentals. You did what? Guns don't kill people, gift cards... more ›

Right around Labor Day we interviewed KCRW dj Jason Bentley about the 30th anniversary of Morning Becomes Eclectic. Today he provides us with his top ten albums of 2007, and you Radiohead fans will be glad to see that he adds them to his list just like most of his cohorts did. Interestingly when Mathieu Schreyner left Radiohead off his list, not only was he not criticized, but he received many more positive comments... more ›