Episode #37: Employment Lawyer Matthew Dewar on How Companies and Employees Can Navigate COVID-19

Talking Shop Podcast

The vaccines are being rolled out as we speak, but that doesn't mean COVID-19 is behind us. The pandemic has left tens of millions of people out of work and companies struggling to stay alive. This week, Duntrune LLP's Matthew Dewar joins the show to share his expectations for employer/employee relations in 2021. While some long layoffs might be considered termination, seeking a settlement from cash strapped companies could be futile in the midst of a pandemic. He's got some ideas on how employers can manage risk and what laid-off employees should consider, too.

Then we look at some positive news from last week: Major League Baseball's decision to include player statistics from the Negro Leagues into the official baseball stat book. The Negro Leagues stopped playing 72 years ago, so it was a long-time coming. While it might appear to be an easy win for MLB, Cam explains why it wasn't quite so simple, and shared his thoughts on what MLB did right as it rolled out the announcement.

In Check This Out, we look at the much maligned (but excellent) U2 album Zooropa, which was released 25 years ago. Staying on the music theme, Cam talked about Britney Spears (!?!?), Henry Kissinger, and growing up in Kentucky. You won't want to miss it.

This marks the final episode of the PR & Law Podcast in 2020. We managed to complete 37 episodes in 37 consecutive weeks, made simpler by the fact Cam and Ewan have both been locked at home throughout much of the pandemic! We have big plans for the show in 2021 and are always looking to improve it. We welcome your thoughts, criticisms, suggestions, ideas, whatever you've got! You can reach us at [e-mail]. We will be back with Episode #38 on January 4.

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Links and Show Notes

• As it Celebrates the Centennial of the Negro Leagues, MLB May Undo a "Major" Mistake - The Ringer
• MLB Can Add Negro Leagues to Official Records but Can Never Change What it Did to Black Players - ESPN
• MLB is Correcting a Longtime Oversight in the Game's History by Officially Elevating the Negro Leagues to "Major League" Status - @MLB on Twitter
• MLB Officially Designates the "Negro Leagues" as Major League - MLB News Release
• Sean Gibson Discusses Grandfather Josh Gibson - MLB Film Room
• Willie Mays to get More Home Runs from Negro Leagues? - MLB Film Room
• Episode #36: Why a Blog Beats a News Release - PR & Law Podcast
• Canva - Design Graphics Quickly and Easily
• Lumen5 - The Easiest Video Maker for Social Media Marketing

Check This Out

• U2 - Zooropa - Pitchfork
• The Unexpected Resonance of Zooropa, U2's Least Remembered Album, 25 Years Later - Vox
• How the Enlightenment Ends - The Atlantic
• The Oracle of Britney - Vanity Fair
• Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis - Amazon
• Hillbilly Elegy - Netflix

Hosts

Ewan Christie is an employment lawyer and partner at Duntrune LLP in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Cam MacMurchy is a corporate communications executive with a multinational technology company listed in Hong Kong and curator of the Digital Bits PR and Communications newsletter. He also contributes to Apple news website 9to5Mac and shares his thoughts on PR, media, travel, and technology on his website.