😘💸 Kiss awkward salary convos goodbye

🫒🍸 Upgrade your after-work drink: At Bar Mezzana, 5 to 6 p.m. on Wednesday is *aperitivo hour,* which means you get a FREE mini charcuterie board with any cocktail or mocktail purchased at the bar or lounge. Make a res here!

🥳 And happy birthday to B-Sider Kendra O’Malley! If anyone deserves a freebie today, it’s you. Have a great day! 

👀 What’s on tap today:

Up first…

Say goodbye to awkward salary convos! Mass.’ long-awaited pay transparency law, which was signed by Gov. Healey in 2024, goes into effect today, which = BIG impacts on the way we talk about $$$ at work.

Here’s what to know:

💸 What *exactly* will the law do? Three big things: 

🙋🏾‍♀️ The goal: Close the pay gap and increase equity. Because, believe it or not, American women still make just 80.9% of what their male counterparts do (and that figure is much lower for Black and Hispanic women). And, not-so-fun fact: The pay gap actually widened for the second year in a row in 2024 (which hasn’t happened in 60 years …). 

👀 Does pay transparency = more equality? Probably. It’s hard to argue with the fact that negotiating is easier when you know the range for open positions. And women in particular could use a leg up on that front: Research shows that without a salary range, women are more likely to lowball than men — and when they do negotiate, are perceived as ~aggressive~ or ~unlikeable~. Meanwhile, after Colorado passed its pay transparency law in 2021, salaries rose 3.6%.

🔍 But some loopholes could undermine the law. Employers could try to get around the requirements by posting ridiculously large salary ranges or offering preferred candidates big bonuses or better benefits.

☕ And not all people love finding out they make less than their colleagues. Studies have found that workers become less productive and happy after learning how much their colleagues make. Case in point: The fallout at the BBC after the UK passed pay transparency legislation in 2017. Spoiler: Women were making 9.3% less than their male counterparts. Cue resignations, pay cuts, and lawsuits.

🫵 What happens if a company doesn’t comply? For now, they’ll be given a two-day window to fix it, and if not, they’ll get a warning for their first offense, then a fine. Just remember: Companies legally can’t penalize you for using these new rights, so if they do, file a complaint with the AG’s office.

🤑 Any other questions? Find your answers here.

🌊 In a few decades, most of the Seaport could be under water. No joke: A recent analysis shows that 99% of the neighborhood’s recently-built areas are at risk of flooding by 2050, per the Boston Globe. Here’s a visual. Turns out, back in the day, developers were *slightly* more concerned with profit margins than climate resilience. And considering that the swanky hood is responsible for an outsized share of Boston’s property tax revenue (think: $343 million last year, enough to fund the Public Health Commission twice over), that’s a BIG problem. 

🌡️ The federal government shutdown’s latest victim: Heat. As the federal government shutdown continues and temperatures drop, the 6.7 million American households (including 159,000+ in Mass.) who rely on federally funded programs to pay their heating bills could be out of luck. Usually, these benefits kick in on Nov. 1, and funding is secured by states well beforehand … but not during this government shutdown. That’s bad news everywhere, but especially in Mass., where 22% of homes use fuel oil heating, which, unlike gas or electricity, isn’t legally required to stay on.

🏘️ The road to a rent control ballot Q just got a little less rocky. Thanks to several of the state’s largest labor unions, who recently threw their support behind the measure, saying it would financially benefit their 270,000+ members. ICYMI: This proposal, which first dropped in August, seeks to tie most annual rent increases to inflation with a hard cap at 5%. Their support is another signal that, despite Mass.’ long history of flopped rent control measures, in our ~increasingly chaotic~ financial situation, voters are more open to controversial solutions.

😋 Eating for under $20? In THIS economy? It’s possible, according to Boston.com! They’re rounding up the cheap best eats in Greater Boston, and Somerville is first on the menu. Start with a dreamy, elevated Egg McMuffin breakfast sammy for about $10 at Vinal Bakery. Then, load up on $5 empanadas at Buenas in Bow Market, which also has a pretty sweet weekday lunch deal. Then, finish off the crawl at Davis Square’s Dakzen, where a giant bowl of curry noodles is just $13. Hungry for more? Check out the whole list here.

Enter to win two hot or iced lattes and a build your own box of six gooey cookies from the Half Cookie from The Half Cookie. To enter, just refer a friend and have them accept your invite by the end of the day on 10/29/2025 Date. 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.

Below are two of the hottest local things to do. This month, B-Side members can save more than $150 across our events, in addition to over 60 other awesome perks. 

❄️ View Boston’s Winter Oasis | Nov. 3 | $50 regular, $25 member | Stratus in View Boston | B-Side members get a sneak peek at Winter Oasis in View Boston before it opens on Nov. 4. Take in views of the city while you savor seasonal cocktails and snacks — before anyone else. 

🤓 Globe Summit 2025 | Nov. 18-19 | House of Blues Boston | $250 regular, FREE member | At The Boston Globe’s annual Globe Summit, hear from speakers like Ben Cohen of Ben & Jerry’s, Gov. Healey, and more. Use code BSIDE25 for 25% off — members, you get in for free!

🎪 Big Apple Circus | Closes Nov. 2 | $129 regular, $100 member | Suffolk Downs | 60 B-Side members get 20% off tickets to the Big Apple Circus, only showing until 11/2. Don’t miss this display of acrobatic talent, comedy, and nonstop thrills. Get tickets here!

👀 Want to feature YOUR upcoming event? Click here.

Is it spelled doughnut, or donut? It’s a debate as old as … Dunkin’, apparently.

According to Boston.com, “doughnut” is the OG, but right around 1950, “donut” made an appearance on the scene … the same time that the first Dunkin’ (which, back then, was Dunkin’ Donuts) opened its doors. By the late 20th century, the shortened spelling was so popular that Merriam-Webster added “donut” as an official variant spelling, and Dunkin’ Donuts had thousands of locations.

And the experts (also, the dictionary itself) say that’s not a coincidence. Brands actually have a big impact on the way that we use language. Not to mention that “donut” is just easier to write.

That said, no matter how much we love an iced medium regular or french cruller, you’ll never catch the B-Side dropping a “donut.” Why? The Associated Press isn’t a fan.

— Written by Gia Orsino and Emily Schario

🍩 Thanks for reading! But that doesn’t stop Gia from constantly forgetting. That stops today!

🏈 The results are in: 63% of B-Siders correctly guessed that the Pats have a 6-2 record, which currently has them sitting pretty at the top of the AFC East. But shoutout to this reader, who said, simply: “I don't know. Or care. Lol!”

💃 Keep up with us @BostonBSide on IG, TikTok, and Twitter. Send comments and suggestions to [email protected] or [email protected].