While the newly enacted wage transparency legislation in Massachusetts aims to promote fairness, it falls short for the majority of blue-collar workers employed by small businesses. Many of these workers, particularly women and people of color, remain outside the reach of these protections, leaving wage disparities largely unaddressed.
Parents and educators in Massachusetts are collecting signatures for a possible ballot measure this November to end the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System or MCAS (“M-cass”) graduation requirement. Massachusetts is one of only eight states that still requires students to pass a standardized test to receive their diploma, but data show a disproportionate number of students of color, those with disabilities and English-language learners are failing to make the grade.