HR Brew // Morning Brew // Update

May 07, 2026

Hey there, HR pros. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong recently announced a slew of changes to the company’s workforce, including plans to cut 14% of staff, flatten the org chart, and experiment with “one person teams” featuring roles that incorporate engineers, designers, and product managers all in one.

Is the era of the engi-design-product manag-ineer upon us? We’ll leave it to the recruitment marketing team to come up with a pithier job title than that.

In today’s edition:

AI brain fry

Legislative lowdown

At-risk roles

—Mikaela Cohen, Courtney Vinopal, Demi Lawrence

HR STRATEGY

Working harder

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Morning Brew Design, Photo: Unsplash

If work wasn’t draining enough, AI might be making it worse…

Most employees (67%) were already experiencing at least one burnout symptom last year, HR Brew previously reported. Now, mental fatigue is getting worse as AI tools infiltrate the workplace, according to recent research from Boston Consulting Group (BCG). The researchers are calling it “AI brain fry,” or the mental fatigue that comes from using and overseeing AI tools.

“Having to constantly provide oversight and engage in decisions about the quality of work that AI is spitting out, that results in decision fatigue,” Leah Buck, an employee engagement consultant and founder of consulting firm WhyWork, told HR Brew. “It’s a task that is inherently draining psychologically.”

For more on AI brain fry, and how it’s affecting HR, keep reading here.—MC

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COMPLIANCE

Legislative lowdown

Francis Scialabba

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis recently signed a bill into law that’s expected to weaken public sector unions’ bargaining power.

The measure, which is set to take effect July 1, will raise the bar that public employees need to clear in order to win and maintain a union, requiring at least 50% of workers in a bargaining unit to vote in the election; previously there was no such participation threshold. More than 50% of those workers must also vote in favor of the union.

Additionally, unions will be required to undergo recertification if more than 60% of workers in the bargaining unit—a term that describes the group of workers represented by the union—haven’t submitted membership forms or paid dues.

The law is likely to affect employers in sectors like education, public utilities, and healthcare. There are exceptions for unions representing police and firefighters.

For more on what HR needs to know about Florida’s anti-union law, keep reading here.—CV

TECH

Survey says

Getty Images

As AI becomes more sentien—I mean, continues to change the basic functions of finance and accounting roles, some roles are likely to be more secure than others, recent research from Bain & Company found.

Bain’s survey of 102 senior finance executives in January and February found that the majority expected headcounts in tax, treasury, and investor relations subfunctions to remain steady over the next 12 months. But about half expected the impact of AI to reduce headcount in day-to-day, or transactional, finance, like accounting and period close, procure to pay, and invoice to cash, Bain Partner Michael Heric and Emilia Fallas, an EVP in the company’s corporate support practice, noted in the survey report.

For more on the findings, keep reading on CFO Brew.—DL

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WORK PERKS

A desktop computer plugged into a green couch.

Francis Scialabba

Today’s top HR reads.

Stat: One-quarter of women in the US workforce spent some hours working remotely as of March, compared to 20.5% of male workers. Technical writers have the highest representation of female teleworkers, at 94%. (National Partnership for Women and Families)

Quote: “The SEC broke its own rules…I worked with them for two years, and then they denied me the award for the case I built.”—Desiree Fixler, a former Deutsche Bank employee who spoke out about the company’s ESG practices, on why she’s fighting the SEC’s decision to deny her a monetary award promised to whistleblowers (the Wall Street Journal)

Read: New York’s Paid Family Leave law is prompting more working moms to take time off after having a child, but takeup rates are higher among those with private insurance compared to those on Medicaid. (Gothamist)

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Written by Mikaela Cohen, Courtney Vinopal, and Demi Lawrence

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☕ I’m fried