The voice of Saint Paul's working families since 1897
St. Paul’s task force on earned sick and safe time has issued its recommendations, and they include requiring employers to provide workers with one hour of sick time for every 30 hours they work, with sick-time earnings capped at 48 hours per year. If adopted by the city’s elected officials, the policy would extend […]
A protest planned by retail janitors today outside Best Buy’s corporate headquarters turned into a celebration after executives agreed to partner with workers on efforts to ensure people who clean the company’s stores have safe and fair working conditions. The agreement, reached late last night on the eve of Best Buy’s annual shareholder meeting, […]
Nurses at four Allina Health facilities in the Twin Cities area are preparing to strike after a “super majority” of union members voted to reject the health care provider’s latest contract offer. The vote sends a clear message to Allina, members of the Minnesota Nurses Association said, that nurses will continue to stand together for […]
Construction workers and contractors formed a united front at the Capitol today in support of a special session allowing state legislators to compromise on two shared priorities – transportation and infrastructure – left unaddressed when session adjourned Sunday night. Lawmakers “still have time to finish,” Minnesota Building and Construction Trades Council President Harry Melander […]
With fiery speeches and foam “No. 1” fingers, advocates of paid family leave rallied outside the Minnesota Capitol today, calling on House Republicans to take up the issue, which Gov. Mark Dayton called “a moral responsibility.” Earlier this month, the DFL-controlled Senate approved a measure designed to prevent workers from being forced to choose between […]
Looking to combat popular myths and widespread misinformation surrounding Social Security and Medicare, the Minnesota State Retiree Council, AFL-CIO, is bringing a presentation on the federal safety-net programs to churches, union halls and civic centers across the state this election year. Tom Beer, president of the retiree council in Minneapolis, said the presentations are designed […]
Labor History Month kicked off in St. Paul last night with a discussion of history in the making, as panelists offered insight into public-sector workers’ recent push to breath new life into their unions and defend their right to a voice on the job. The public forum, titled “The Friedrichs Case and the Future […]
On the same day over 100 Twin Cities fast-food workers went on strike, area nursing home workers took up the “Fight for $15” as well, rallying outside a Roseville care center for a contract that includes fair wages. Employees of Golden Living Center welcomed nursing-home residents, striking fast-food workers and other supporters to an informational […]
Women working in Minnesota will earn $382,360 less than their male counterparts, on average, over the course of a 40-year career. As bad as that sounds, Minnesota’s lifetime wage gap is actually better than the national average. Pay disparities between women and men are in the spotlight today on “Equal Pay Day,” but it’s not […]
It’s fair to say state Rep. Steve Drazkowski has a reputation for advancing extreme ideas. He’s supported logging in Minnesota’s state parks and eliminating the Pay Equity Act, even floated the idea of replacing health care workers with baby monitors. The Mazeppa Republican is at it again this session, inserting Wisconsin-style Right to Work […]
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