Tracie McMillan
@tmmcmillan.bsky.social
Reporter and writer covering business x affordability for Guardian US, NYT opinion and more. Living between Detroit and Brooklyn. Reporting nationwide and occasionally abroad.
My latest, for @nytopinion.nytimes.com , with special assist from @economichardship.bsky.social.
New York Times Opinion@nytopinion.nytimes.com · last wk.Tenants are facing a sharp rise in add-on fees, charged on top of rents, which have increased by 36 percent since the start of the pandemic, Tracie McMillan writes.
“It’s a way of advertising a lower rent, but then adding on costs so that the tenant ends up paying more.” www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026... By @tmmcmillan.bsky.social via @theguardian.com
‘It kept adding up’: how add-on utility fees can lead to eviction for tenants
Tenants can be evicted for not paying utilities even if they have paid rent – tenants and their allies are fighting back
theguardian.com
My latest for @us.theguardian.com with an assist from @economichardship.bsky.social: Should you get evicted over a utility bill? Lots of landlords say yes. And tenants are paying the price.
Guardian US@us.theguardian.com · 2mo ago“Ratio utility billing system” fees – known within the apartment industry as “Rubs” – are an emerging problem nationwide, charged on top of rent and rarely given prices in apartment listings or leases. Co-published with the @economichardship.bsky.social:
My first TikTok ever got 110,000 views in 4 days, and naerly 1,000 comments. The topic? My @GuardianUS investigation into junk fees in rental housing. www.tiktok.com/@tmmcmillan/...
My latest for @guardian.#Greystar #junkfees #RUBS #Greystarcommunity #utilities #tenantsrights #tenantunion
TikTok video by Tracie McMillan
tiktok.com
Thrilled to talk about my work for @us.theguardian.com on apartment junk fees and Greystar with folks at @econliberties.bsky.social economicpopulist.substack.com/p/the-rent-i...
The Rent Is Higher Than You Think
Corporate landlords found a new way to raise prices.
economicpopulist.substack.com
Part 2: Tenants are fighting back against junk fees. States and the Federal Trade Commission are starting to listen. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
US renters call for action to combat surge of ‘take it or leave it’ apartment fees
Tenants push for tougher rules against unfair add-on charges. Industry players argue against policies that they say could limit the ‘effective use of fees’
theguardian.com
Renters at apartment buildings operated by industry giant Greystar complain they’re deluged by ‘unfair’ and ‘inflated’ fees. The company denies these claims. We found 125 different fees in US listings, from pet fees for DNA testing of dog poop to "variable refrigerant flow."
‘Extremely overwhelmed’: apartment renters face rising tide of fees
Guardian investigation: Renters at apartment buildings operated by industry giant Greystar complain they’re deluged by ‘unfair’ and ‘inflated’ fees. The company denies these claims
theguardian.com
Corporations are extracting billions from America’s safety net and their payday is about to be supercharged by new rules. I lay out how programs like Medicaid have become vulnerable to corporate capture and what we need to build to stop it. @lpeblog.bsky.social lpeproject.org/blog/the-mea...
The Means-Testing Industrial Complex
As Republicans tightened work requirements and eligibility rules for Medicaid and SNAP last year, Equifax’s CEO openly celebrated the profits to be made from administering this deprivation.
lpeproject.org
Three million care workers could be reclassified as "companions" instead of professionals under a proposal from the Trump admin, ending their right to federal minimum wage and overtime pay. Producer: Cerise Castle Camera: Jeff Ricker Editor: Marco Amador #homehealthcare #minimumwage #News
Thrilled to work with Kalena Thomave on this critical piece of reporting: The Trump administration is proposing to take away min wage and overtime for home care workers, a profession dominated by women of color—and the workers aren't taking it sitting down.
David Weil@profsheenalives.bsky.social · 11mo agoI led the DOL's Wage and Hour Division when the homecare rule was affirmed and we implemented it for 2+million workers and the people they help. This article captures the cost of Trump's effort to take away those protections. capitalandmain.com/home-care-wo... @nelp.org @capitalandmain.bsky.social
Eagerly awaiting an analysis linking Mamdami’s rap career to the joyful, earned, and *savage* braggadocio in that victory speech youtu.be/9MfBp8xUR3Q?...
Zohran Mamdani delivers victory speech
YouTube video by ABC News
youtu.be
Dollar Store workers like David Williams are organizing to improve their working conditions without the help of unions. Instead, they've turned to groups like @raiseupthesouth.bsky.social @stepuplouisiana.bsky.social. Experts say that strategy may be their best bet. #DollarGeneral #LocalNews #Union
I am such a fan of this kind of reporting -- and so well done! Congrats, @detdocumenters.bsky.social and @kobylevin.bsky.social. (Full disclosure: I did a deep dive on food prices in Detroit for Slate when Whole Foods opened in 2013.)
Detroit Documenters@detdocumenters.bsky.social · last yr.Earlier this summer, we sent 20 Detroit Docs around the city to document the situation with groceries — their availability, quality and prices. Read our four-part series to find out what they discovered! ⤵️ outliermedia.org/cheapest-gro...
Really proud to work on this piece with the excellent @tatiwm.bsky.social
Capital & Main@capitalandmain.bsky.social · last yr.As workplace violence has risen over the last decade, an increasing number of workers are organizing. Across the country, nurses and cashiers, drivers and food servers are fighting for a right that many take as a given: being safe from violence at work. capitalandmain.com/im-tired-of-...
Great work from @blumorpheusbttrfly.bsky.social on how private equity’s entry into HOSPICE is fueling worker organizing.
Capital & Main@capitalandmain.bsky.social · last yr.Private equity investment in end-of-life care has boomed over the last decade. After 29 months without a contract, a new labor union is resisting the "financialization" of hospice care. Story by @blumorpheusbttrfly.bsky.social capitalandmain.com/private-equi...
Private equity investment in end-of-life care has boomed over the last decade. After 29 months without a contract, a new labor union is resisting the "financialization" of hospice care. Story by @blumorpheusbttrfly.bsky.social capitalandmain.com/private-equi...
Private Equity in Hospice Care Spurs Workers to Strike
After 29 months without a contract, a new hospice union resists the financialization of end-of-life care.
capitalandmain.com
Really proud of the work @rainesford.bsky.social pulled off in this KENTUCKY union story, including tracking down a document showing the consultants they paid $425/hr to meet with workers have a track record of following union supporters around at their jobs to talk them out of supporting a union.
Capital & Main@capitalandmain.bsky.social · last yr.Workers at the Ford-owned battery plant BlueOval SK in Kentucky asked for a union vote six months ago. But Trump's changes to the NLRB could extend delays. The @uaw.org is now urging an investigation into the company's union-busting efforts. capitalandmain.com/ford-owned-b...
A May 22 move by the Supreme Court may signal the end of the NLRB’s independence and transform the agency into an extension of the White House, labor leaders say. Their warning: Trump could use the board to reward friends and punish enemies. capitalandmain.com/its-time-to-...
‘It’s Time to Ring the Alarm Bell’
Labor leaders say a May Supreme Court decision could turn the agency that protects workers into a rubber stamp for President Trump.
capitalandmain.com
Hundreds of nurses employed by the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center say they are having to fight just to schedule a union election. Meanwhile, their employer is justifying delays by citing the Trump administration’s changes to the NLRB. capitalandmain.com/nurses-run-u...
Nurses Run Up Against Labor Board Stalled By Trump
Pennsylvania's largest hospital joins rise in employers citing federal changes to fight unionization.
capitalandmain.com
Slashing $300B in food assistance will only make life harder for millions of working families. "Americans need SNAP because their jobs often don’t pay enough to cover basic living expenses. That is a problem of wages, not dependency. " ✍️ @tmmcmillan.bsky.social
Opinion | I Got $4 a Week in Food Stamps. This Is the Reality of Hunger in America.
Work requirements for SNAP will kick people off the program.
nytimes.com
"In one of the wealthiest countries in the history of the world, a missed call means cupboards begin to empty. A typo in an email address means stomachs start to growl." @tmmcmillan.bsky.social in today's Opinion pages: www.nytimes.com/2025/06/10/o...
Opinion | In One of the World’s Wealthiest Countries, More People Will Go Hungry
Work requirements for SNAP will kick people off the program.
nytimes.com
“Americans need SNAP because their jobs often don’t pay enough to cover basic living expenses. That is a problem of wages, not dependency.”
Tracie McMillan@tmmcmillan.bsky.social · last yr.TLDR: Don't cut SNAP. Make work pay. www.nytimes.com/2025/06/10/o...
@tmmcmillan.bsky.social has a new must-read piece on SNAP and work requirements. While her characterization of the evidence is both accurate and awesome, her story and the stories of other participants matter more. Let's all act in good faith. Gift article: www.nytimes.com/2025/06/10/o...
Great to work with Kalena Thomave on this piece!
Capital & Main@capitalandmain.bsky.social · last yr.President Donald Trump is dismantling pro-worker reforms enacted under Joe Biden — the very same reforms that have allowed a Georgia school bus company thrive. Here's what American workers and companies are losing. capitalandmain.com/in-georgia-t...
"These threats are a straight-line result of the Democratic Party’s abandonment of America’s original system of liberty. If we are honest, we will admit that Trump sits in the White House thanks largely to the rage of citizens Democrats betrayed."
Open Markets Institute@openmarkets.bsky.social · last yr.In a new essay in @washingtonmonthly.com, Barry Lynn urges Democrats to relearn the language and levers of power - of economic democracy - in order to become the party of the working class once again. READ: washingtonmonthly.com/2025/06/01/r...
Thrilled to see (belatedly) that @capitalandmain.bsky.social took home 37 (!!) awards at the California Journalism Awards, including the series I edit, Striking Back. cnpa.com/california-j...
Congratulations to the 2024 CJA Winners! - CNPA
Congratulations to the 2024 California Journalism Awards Finalists! We’re proud to honor the outstanding work of this year’s finalists, who placed in the top five of at least one of their entered cate...
cnpa.com
In their third walkout, New Orleans nurses with @nationalnurses.bsky.social face a drawn-out contract fight. Today, the nurses not only have to overcome their employer’s resistance, but the downstream effects of the Trump administration’s policy changes, too. capitalandmain.com/is-trump-bad...
Is Trump Bad for Nurses?
In their third walkout, New Orleans nurses face a drawn-out contract fight. Observers say the president's policies aren't helping.
capitalandmain.com
“Engage,Dems.” 👀🍿
Greg Sargent@gregsargent.bsky.social · 2y agoRemarkable from WaPo poll: Trump sinking fast on immigration among independents. 56% disapprove of handling of issue 62% oppose removing foreign students 52% oppose renditions to El Salvador Only 21% want Abrego Garcia left there Engage, Dems. New piece from me: newrepublic.com/article/1944...
