Updated

Updated · WBUR News · Jul 10

Massachusetts Senate Passes 38-2 Teen Social Media Bill Blocking Addictive Features

Updated

Updated · WBUR News · Jul 10

Massachusetts Senate Passes 38-2 Teen Social Media Bill Blocking Addictive Features

Q: With a transit strike halting 13,000 daily trips, will the union's latest offer finally get Merrimack Valley moving again?

Possibly, but service is not back yet. The clearest sign of movement is that Teamsters Local 170 has submitted a one-year pre-ratified agreement to Merrimack Valley Transit after 10 days on strike. The proposal includes previously negotiated health care improvements, and additional reporting says it would preserve Saturday overtime while giving both sides time to keep working on the core dispute over Saturday scheduling. That unresolved Saturday issue remains the main obstacle. MeVa has wanted to make Saturday shifts part of regular schedules at standard pay, while drivers have argued that would effectively cut overtime earnings. Earlier, MeVa had offered a 25.4% wage increase over three years and fully employer-paid health insurance, but that did not settle the dispute. So the union’s latest offer appears to be the strongest opening yet for ending the stoppage, especially because it is pre-ratified and designed as a temporary bridge. But buses for roughly 13,000 daily riders in 16 communities will not resume until the transit authority accepts the deal or both sides finalize another agreement. MeVa was still reviewing the proposal as of July 9. In practical terms, riders should see this as a credible path to restoring service, not a finished settlement. The strike could end soon if MeVa agrees, but there was no confirmed restart of service yet.

3 articles · Updated · WBUR News · Jul 10

Massachusetts senators approved a 38-2 bill requiring social media companies to block addictive features for minors, advancing the state’s latest effort to curb harms tied to teen smartphone and platform use.
The Senate measure would require default settings that disable addictive feeds, autoplay and overnight notifications for minors, and unlike Gov. Maura Healey’s proposal, it would not let minors switch those settings off.
House and Senate lawmakers must now reconcile the bill with a House version passed in April that would ban social media for children under 14, a tougher approach that has drawn privacy and LGBTQ concerns and faced court setbacks elsewhere.
Boston has already escalated pressure on the industry, suing Meta, TikTok and Snapchat this week over what the city calls addictive design features.