🚗 Is your Uber about to get pricier?

It’s Wednesday, Boston.

📚 Many folks don’t know much about Mass. Senate candidate John Deaton. But after reading Boston.com’s summary of his absolutely wild memoir, we can confidently say that we are, for better or for worse … not among those people.

👀 What’s on tap today:

• Boston’s most dangerous intersections

• Another Boston sports docuseries

• The banners behind the banner

Up first…

BALLOT QUESTIONS

Before you order that Uber, read this

Another day, another ballot question for YOU to answer. This time, we wanna know: Should rideshare drivers be able to unionize?

Here’s the rundown on Question 3:

❓ What’s Question 3 actually asking? When most American workers want to form a union, they have a clear path to do so by following the rules of the National Labor Relations Board. But because rideshare workers (folks that drive for Uber and Lyft) are technically considered independent contractors instead of employees, they can’t do that. This Q is asking whether those drivers should be able to unionize. 

📝 A little added context: In June, Mass. reached a groundbreaking settlement with Uber and Lyft that gave drivers a decent wage floor and some benefits. More on that later.

👍  What a “yes” vote means: A “yes” vote would give drivers the ability to unionize and collectively bargain for wages and benefits through “sector-based bargaining,” which is unprecedented in the U.S. Translation: Drivers across all the different rideshare companies would negotiate together for industry-wide contracts.

👎  What a “no” vote means: The status quo remains, a.k.a., the terms agreed to in that settlement. 

🔍  The research says … The introduction of sector-based bargaining requires tons of new structural regulation, and if successful, could set a model for other industries nationwide. Because of that, it would also likely bring about a bunch of legal challenges, according to an impartial study by Tufts’ Center for State Policy and Analysis. This Q accounts for some of those challenges in its detailed structuring (take a look at the deets here). 

👀 One controversial detail: Some drivers don’t get a vote. Under the proposed structure, only the most active half of drivers could vote on who reps their union, and only drivers with over 100 trips that quarter can vote on a contract, which may “undermine union legitimacy.”

💬 What other folks are saying … Unsurprisingly, the biggest opponents to this Q are the rideshare companies, which are legitimately concerned that this question will likely drive up prices (modestly). But most polled voters and the Globe’s editorial board seem to think the benefits outweigh those costs. The Globe argues that while important, the state’s victory in June was limited. Accounting for vehicle costs and the fact that only minutes with passengers count toward drivers’ $32.50 minimum wage, actual pocketed pay looks more like $15 to $25 an hour. Plus, drivers are still without significant protections, like unemployment benefits or workers’ comp insurance. 

🎙️ Need more info? Here’s Boston.com’s Question 3 explainer. And here’s a conversation on the topic from GBH's Boston Public Radio.

QUICK QUESTION

🗳️ Which way are you thinking of voting on Question 3?

TOGETHER WITH FLEXCAR

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CITY

Quick & dirty headlines

🚶 It doesn’t take a dataset to know that Boston intersections are sketchy. But if you want one, the Globe’s got it. Boston averages about 1,900 serious or fatal crashes a year, with No. 1 culprit Mass. and Cass racking up 124 since 2015. Many of the city’s most dangerous intersections are in underserved communities, especially the South End, Dorchester, and Roxbury, where infrastructure prioritizes speedy driving over pedestrians. But factors like nearby hospitals, highways, or lots of truck traffic can make an intersection unsafe anywhere. Dig deeper with this handy intersection crash map.

💸 These Massholes have some deep pockets. Riddle us this: If Mass. has so few competitive political races, how come we rank ninth in political donations? Answer: Our wealthiest residents are sending tons of cash to out-of-state elections. See: $13.5 million to the Movement Voter PAC, and $10 million to the Congressional Leadership Fund just this year. But it’s not just Mass. Because there are so few true battleground states, wealthy, partisan folks tend to funnel their money (like, a lot of money) into key areas and races that might decide elections. 

🪧 Some professors are NOT into new campus protest policies. Whether it’s a vote of no confidence from the faculty at UMass, or a group of professors holding a “study-in” at a Harvard library, local professors are pushing back against the new, more restrictive rules around campus protest. As many colleges are facing increased scrutiny and pressure from politicians and donors following campus protests over the Israel-Hamas war, more professors are feeling the heat and speaking out against university policies that they say limit free speech. 

⚾ Prepare to relive one of Boston’s most iconic sports moments. If, like some of us here (Gia), you were a literal toddler when the Red Sox broke the curse almost 20 years ago, the new Netflix documentary “The Comeback” is probably your best chance to truly *get it.* In three, hour-long episodes, the series chronicles the Sox’ historic comeback and eventual world series W, plus everything that led up to it and made it oh-so sweet. And it helps that the Globe calls it “pitch perfect.” The series drops today. 

GIVEAWAY

Together with PLAY Boston/Big Night Live

Enter to win a $100 PLAY gift card and two tickets to your choice of a show at Big Night Live. To enter, just refer a friend and have them accept your invite by the end of the day on Oct. 23rd. If you have already referred a friend to B-Side (and they’ve accepted), you're eligible! Full details below*

18+. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Limit one entry per person. See Official Rules & an additional entry option here.

ONE LAST THING

The banner behind the banner

Everyone’s always talking about winning banners. But no one’s ever talking about making banners. Until now, that is. 

Ahead of TD officially receiving the Celtics’ 18th banner, the Globe checked in with the folks who are making it at New England Flag and Banner. Turns out, there’s a lot more that goes into making the banners than you’d think. 

For example, did you know that most of the C’s banners have a lucky penny inside them? Or that the NBA bubble above each title is colored depending on whether the championship was won at home or on the road? Or that following a banner-destroying fire in the ‘70s, they’re all made fireproof? 

OK, we’ll stop for now. But there are a lot more banner facts where that came from.

— Written by Gia Orsino and Emily Schario

🚩 Thanks for reading! I’m not here to disrespect tradition, but what are the odds they made the banner just a little cuter this year?

💜 Special shoutout to today’s sponsor, Flexcar, for supporting local journalism and making transportation more affordable and accessible in Boston. 

🎒 The results are in: 64% of polled B-Siders tell us that they wouldn’t drop any money on a the new Noah Kahan/L.L. Bean tote bag, which, BTW, is the only item in the collection that sold out almost immediately. One reader said: “Noah's already taken so much of my money over the years, what's a little more?”

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