[addtoany]

Washington Wildfires: As the wildfires in our state rage on, easterly winds blew smoke from those fires into our area this weekend, prompting the National Weather Service to issue Air Quality Alerts, according to KING 5 News. The hazy skies should improve today, as winds are slated to shift to the west. To see where the fires are currently burning, consult this interactive map here. If you’d like to donate to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief, which helps those affected by wildfires and other disasters, go here. 

Good news for the 326 employees at local pet supply store Mud Bay: They are now “eligible to be owners,” the Puget Sound Business Journal reports, after the company’s co-ceos Lars and Marisa Wulff opted to create an employee stock ownership plan. The pair hopes the “creation of the plan will develop an ownership culture can help the business grow faster.”

Can three reforms help foster a better working environment at Amazon? That’s what an anonymous employee says in this “Amazonian Manifesto,” which was published over the weekend and addresses a few ways ceo Jeff Bezos could improve upon corporate working conditions at his company. (E.g: abolish the Levels system that classifies employees by letter and number.) This response (not to mention many other responses) comes on the heels of this much-talked-about New York Times article regarding Amazon and its potentially demanding and “bruising” workplace. Geekwire’s Todd Bishop discussed all things Amazon with NYT reporter Jodi Kantor, which you can read here.