The voice of Saint Paul's working families since 1897
Backing the emergent campaign for a $15 minimum wage in St. Paul is the right thing to do, labor leaders said in a meeting with AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler last night. But as unions look to reverse the trend of declining density, joining the fight to raise wages is also about remaining relevant. “We […]
Workers taking collective action and communities organizing for political change form the groundwork of 15 Now, panelists said Wednesday during a forum on the nationwide movement to raise wages. The discussion was the second in a new series of monthly educational events hosted by the East Side Freedom Library in St. Paul, co-sponsored by […]
Activists picketed outside Target Corp.’s headquarters downtown Minneapolis yesterday, calling on CEO Brian Cornell to make raising wages for frontline workers a part of the company’s massive restructuring effort. Organizers of 15 Now, a grassroots movement working to raise the minimum wage in Minneapolis, looked to pressure Target into following the lead of its primary […]
The parent company of T.J. Maxx and Marshalls yesterday announced it would copy Walmart’s decision to raise minimum hourly wages for U.S. workers to $9 per hour by June. But a Twin Cities-based worker center cast doubt on whether the change would benefit the low-wage workers who clean those stores. That’s because TJX Cos. contracts […]
Working people should not be trapped in poverty. This was part of the social contract America made with its people 80 years ago in the New Deal. Workers will receive a minimum wage. It may not be enough to make you rich, but you will have enough to afford necessities for your family – food, […]
More than 100 activists gathered in a Minneapolis union hall last night to begin the work of raising the minimum wage within city limits to $15 per hour. Lest anyone suggest tempering expectations, 15 Now organizers invited Kshama Sawant, the city council member who spearheaded Seattle’s successful fight for $15 just over a year ago, […]
As debate swirled at the State Capitol in recent years over whether – and how much – to raise Minnesota’s minimum wage, lawmakers found themselves confronted with a question their own experts could not easily answer. How much do workers need to earn to meet their most basic costs? To zero in on an answer, […]
Airport workers’ campaign for better wages and conditions took a step forward today, as the Metropolitan Airports Commission unanimously approved a measure requiring employers to provide paid sick leave to all workers at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. Supporters of 15 Now, a worker-led coalition seeking to raise the minimum wage at MSP to $15 per […]
Jeff Johnson, the Republican nominee for governor, provided a glimpse of his leadership style May 15, telling a Tea Party group he would “go all Scott Walker on Minnesota” if elected Nov. 4. So what is it about Walker’s Wisconsin that Johnson believes is worth replicating? To answer that question – and to get a […]
How do minimum-wage workers feel about Republican gubernatorial candidate Jeff Johnson’s opposition to wage increases scheduled for 2015 and 2016, and cost-of-living increases scheduled to begin in 2018? Ask Darcy Landau, one of tens of thousands of workers statewide who saw their wages climb to $8 per hour Aug. 1. “Does Mr. Johnson realize the […]
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