Tech:NYC Digest: February 9

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Wednesday, February 9, 2022

In today’s digest, state indoor mask mandate to expire tomorrow, permanent outdoor dining program hits roadblock, and how companies and employees can prevent “ghosting” each other.

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By the numbers:  

• New positive cases statewide: 6,041

  • New positive cases, NYC: 2,007

• NYC Positivity Rate: 2.6 percent (-0.2 percent) 

• NYC Hospitalizations: 1,901 (-176)

• Statewide Vaccine Progress: 

  • Percentage of all New Yorkers with least one dose: 88.0 percent

  • Percentage of all New Yorkers who are fully vaccinated: 74.6 percent  

Today’s latest: 

• Gov. Kathy Hochul will let New York’s statewide indoor mask mandate expire tomorrow, ending a requirement that businesses that don’t screen for vaccination must require mask-wearing at all times. (New York Times)

  • In NYC, that means masks are no longer required in supermarkets, stores, pharmacies, laundromats, etc.

  • However, other mask mandates governing mass transit and airports, hospitals and healthcare settings, and other group settings are still in effect.

  • The school mask mandate will also remain in place through at least March 7, but Gov. Hochul has indicated it could expire upon review of vaccination and testing data for children in the first week of March. (Spectrum News)

  • New York joins New Jersey, Connecticut, California, and other states that recently loosened mask mandates for schools and businesses.

• Dr. Anthony Fauci said the US is heading out of the “full blown” pandemic phase of COVID-19, predicting vaccinations, treatments, and prior infection would make the virus more manageable. (Financial Times)

• The NYC Council is reviewing legislation to create a permanent outdoor dining program. However, the head of the NYC Dept. of Transportation’s Open Restaurants Program has said the makeshift structures won’t be allowed to remain standing after the COVID-19 pandemic eases. (New York Post)

• Johnson & Johnson quietly shut down the only plant making usable batches of its COVID-19 vaccine last year. The halt is temporary, as the plant is expected to start manufacturing vaccines again after a pause of a few months. It’s unclear whether it has had an impact on vaccine supplies yet, thanks to stockpiles. (New York Times)

In other reading:

• Should I ask my date to get a coronavirus test? How rapid testing became a dating ritual. (Washington Post)

• I’m vaxxed, boosted, and just had COVID-19. Can I relax now? (Vox)

• "The next culture war": Vaccines for young kids (Axios)

Ghosting — severing all communication with someone suddenly and without warning — doesn’t just happen in the dating world. It also happens between job candidates and companies, and more often than you’d think. (Morning Brew)

• A survey of 1,500 candidates by hiring software maker Greenhouse found 75 percent of job applicants say they’ve been ghosted by a prospective employer after an interview. This tracks with a 2021 survey from Indeed, which found that 77 percent of workers had been ghosted by a potential employer since the onset of the pandemic in March 2020. 

With the volume of activity in the labor market right now, candidates and employers alike are being inundated — and ghosted — like never before.

• Kimberly Reeves, an HR, payroll, and finance consultant, told SHRM last year that recruiters need to ensure applicants never feel like the hiring process is becoming paranormal.

Candidates are also guilty of ghosting. According to a survey of 2,000 employees by people analytics and workforce planning company Visier, 84 percent of job seekers have ghosted a potential or current employer, or both, in the past 18 months. 

But sometimes, ghosting can perhaps be a good thing. Brian Hershey, head of enterprise strategy at the talent marketplace Gloat, told Visier, “If it’s not a serious conversation or a good fit, I think employee ghosting early in the process is probably a net positive for both parties." And if a company ghosts you during the interview process, it’s possible they’d do the same if you came aboard. (Fast Company)

In other reading: 

• Why Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg lets his employees work whenever they want — from wherever they want (Wall Street Journal)

• The ‘pulse surveys’ employers rely on to gauge levels of employee fatigue (WorkLife)

• How to ask your manager for a flexible work schedule (Fortune)

• EasyKnock, a New York City-based residential sale-leaseback platform, raised $57 million in Series C funding. Participating investors included Blumberg Capital, Gaingels, Moderne Ventures, QED Investors and Viola FinTech. (Newswire)

• Leaf Logistics, a New York City-based trucking logistics platform provider, raised $37 million in Series B funding.Sozo Ventures led the round and was joined by Madrona Venture Group, Playground Global, Floodgate, Schematic Ventures, and Supply Chain Ventures. (VentureBeat)

• Splendid Spoon, a New York City -based food delivery platform for plant-based meals, raised $12 million in Series B funding. Nicoya led the round and was joined by Torch Capital, Danone Manifesto Ventures, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, Rent the Runway co-founder Jennifer Fleiss, and others. (TechCrunch)

• Vicarius, a New York City-based autonomous vulnerability remediation platform, raised $24 million in Series A funding. AllegisCyber Capital, JVP, and AlleyCorp co-led the round. (TechCrunch)

NextView is accepting applications for its Everyday Economy Accelerator program. The program is seeking consumer and SaaS B2B startups at the pre-seed and seed stage, offering $400K access to NextView’s investor, operator, and extended advisor network. Learn more and apply by Feb. 14 here.Interact is accepting applications for its 2022 fellowship program. The Interact Fellowship is open to young technologists interested in participating in two fully-sponsored summer retreats with other founders, engineers, community builders, and more, as well as access to grants programs and VC partners. Learn more and apply by Feb. 15 here.The Transit Tech Lab is accepting applications for its 2022 program. The lab, which supports growth-stage companies with solutions for improving NYC’s public transit system, provides the opportunity to pilot their tools with the MTA and other leading transit agencies. Learn more and apply by March 25 here.Y Combinator is accepting applications for its Summer 2022 cohort. The program will be all-virtual with optional in-person opportunities, and accepted companies will receive $500K in total investments. Learn more and apply by March 31 here.Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator (ERA) is accepting applications for its Summer 2022 program. Selected companies participate in a four-month program and receive $100K in investments, with the potential for follow-on funding from ERA’s Fund. Learn more and apply by April 25 here.

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