Tech:NYC Digest: August 3

Tech:NYC Digest: August 3

August 03, 2021 • Estimated Reading Time: 10 minutes

Tuesday, August 3, 2021

In today’s digest, NYC to require proof of vaccination for indoor activities starting Aug. 16, calls for Gov. Cuomo’s resignation remount amid NY Attorney General report, US reaches 70 percent milestone of adults with at least one dose, and hybrid work can mean a few different things: is your company ready?

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By the numbers:

  • New positive cases statewide: 2,932 (+789)

    • New positive cases, NYC: 1,444 (+242)

  • Statewide Fatalities: 5 (+1)

  • NYC Positivity Rates: 

    • NYS reports: 2.5 percent (+0.1 percent)

    • NYC reports: 3.1 percent (+0.1 percent)

  • Statewide Vaccine Progress:

    • Percentage of adults (18+) with at least one dose: 75.6 percent

    • Percentage of total population with at least one dose: 63.3 percent

(For fuller breakdowns, find the state’s numbers here and the city’s numbers here.)

Today’s latest:

Beginning August 16, New York City will require proof of vaccination to enter all restaurants, fitness centers, and indoor entertainment venues. (New York Times)

  • NYC is the first major US city to announce a broad-reaching mandate of this kind. France and Italy issued similar mandates last month.

Here are the details:

  • The mandate, dubbed the “Key to NYC Pass,” will require proof of vaccination for workers and customers at indoor dining, gyms, and entertainment and performance venues, including Broadway and other large scale concert halls. (POLITICO) 

  • It will go into effect beginning August 16, and after a transition period, enforcement will begin on September 13.

  • Outdoor dining will still be permitted without showing proof of vaccination. To enter indoor venues, patrons must present the city’s new NYC COVID Safe app (iOS | Android), the state’s Excelsior Pass app, or an official CDC vaccination card to show proof of vaccination.

The reason for the mandate is clear: Get more people vaccinated. It turns the dial up for convincing holdouts to get the vaccine — or else have severely limited access to a post-pandemic NYC.

  • "It is time for people to see vaccinations as literally necessary to living a good, full and healthy life," Mayor de Blasio said. "If you're unvaccinated, unfortunately, you will not be able to participate in many things." (NBC News)

The number of New York counties meeting the CDC thresholds for which indoor masking is recommended regardless of vaccination status has grown to 33 — more than half. (Democrat & Chronicle) That includes all NYC counties.

In other news: 

  • New York Attorney General Letitia James released findings today from her office’s investigation into allegations of Gov. Cuomo’s sexual misconduct. The AG’s report substantiated sexual harassment claims made by numerous women and found Gov. Cuomo’s behavior violated multiple state and federal laws. (New York Times) James’ office was narrowly tasked with producing the investigation’s report, which is now available to the public. That investigation is civil in nature and won’t carry any criminal consequences. 

    • Many elected officials, including every Democrat in the state’s congressional delegation, as well as Mayor de Blasio, have called on the governor to resign. So far, he has refused. (The Hill)

    • Pres. Biden said minutes ago that the governor should resign following the investigation’s findings, adding “I think he’ll probably end up being prosecuted, too.” (New York Times)

    • Eyes now turn to the state Assembly, where impeachment proceedings were already underway and we’re awaiting a response. (POLITICO)

  • Monday, the CDC reported 70 percent percent of adults in the country have received at least one vaccine dose — almost a month after Pres. Biden’s original target date of July 4. The agency also reported 60.6 percent percent of American adults — and 49.7 percent of the total population — are fully vaccinated. (New York Magazine)

    • The pace of vaccination has rebounded amid concerns about the highly contagious Delta variant, which is driving a surge in cases. 

  • New York City’s transit system stands to receive at least $10.7 billion in federal funding from a $1 trillion infrastructure bill. The funds would also go toward advancing several major projects, including the Gateway plan to build rail tunnels under the Hudson River, completion of the Second Avenue subway in Manhattan, and rehabilitation of the rail tunnels under the East River. (New York Times)

We’ve heard from companies about their return-to-office plans and the strategies they’ll use to make the transition back as smooth as possible. Many have tried to develop clear protocols for what “hybrid work” means (and we’ve shared many of those updates in this newsletter), but the reality is: most still have no idea.

Axios business reporter Erica Pandey says there’s a key distinction to be made — whether hybrid work means the workforce is hybrid or the workweek is hybrid. The answer has significant impacts for workers’ ability to fully embrace the idea of flexible work.

  • Surveys have found that about half of the respondents, workers and firms alike, want hybrid work, but employer-employee consistency on what that means is hard to come by.

Some 68 percent of firms across industries don't have a clear hybrid plan in place yet, according to a McKinsey survey. Different models of hybrid work could include asking employees to come into the office for part of the week or letting some employees be fully remote while others are working in person. 

Without clear plans from employers, employees are less able to sustain the lifestyle changes they expected remote work would allow:

  • A hybrid model that calls for a few days in the office won't let workers move too far away because they'll need to live within commuting distance. And working parents who want to telecommute to care for children will have to secure childcare for the days they go into the office.

  • But a model that has some people in the office full-time while others fully remote could fray company culture. Remote employees may feel excluded — and even get overlooked — when assignments or promotions are handed out.

Our takeaway: At this point, it’s a given that hybrid work is here to stay, but that doesn’t mean we know how it’s going to work. While we’re in (another) limbo with reopening plans due to the Delta variant, companies should use the additional time to fine tune their plans with long-term outcomes in mind — or risk losing talent.

In related reading:

  • ‘This Could Have Been a Zoom Meeting’: Companies Rethink Travel (New York Times)

  • Business travel could be going out of style (Axios)

  • A Wall Street Dressing Down: Always. Be. Casual. (New York Times)

  • Juno Medical, a New York-based primary care company, raised $5.4M in seed funding. The round was led by Vast Ventures with participation from Atento Capital, Company Ventures, humbition, RareBreed Ventures, and Lafayette Square. (PR Newswire)

  • August 10: Virtual: How Tech Companies Expand Internationally, with Accel partner Rich Wong, Atomic founder in residence Swathy Prithivi, Asana head of global revenue Oliver Jay, and others. Hosted by Protocol. Register here.

  • August 11: Virtual: Fostering Innovation Post-COVID, with Refraction CEO Esther Lee, Company Ventures’ Urban Tech Hub executive director Robinson Hernandez, and others. Hosted by Savills. Register here.

  • October 6 – 7: In-Person: 2021 Propelify Innovation Festival, with Tech:NYC founder and executive director Julie Samuels, Capsule CEO Eric Kinariwala, Noom CEO Saeju Jeong, Bowery Farming CEO Irving Fain, and others. Hosted by TechUnited:NJ. Use code WeInventTheFuture to register for a free general admission ticket for a limited time here.

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