Council vote gives St. Paul nation’s strongest earned sick time ordinance

Members of the St. Paul City Council today voted 7-0 to pass an ordinance hailed by working people, small business owners, clergy members and other advocates as the strongest earned sick and safe time law on the books nationwide. Mayor Chris Coleman immediately indicated he would support the ordinance, making St. Paul the 35th U.S. […]

Small business owners voice support for sick-time ordinance in St. Paul

  At a press conference today, small business owners in St. Paul said passing a citywide sick-time ordinance is the right thing to do – not only for the health of their workers, but also the health of their bottom lines. Providing employees with earned sick and safe time makes them less likely to jump […]

Allina nurses’ strike lines swelling with solidarity

  Allina nurses are walking the picket lines outside five Twin Cities health care facilities this week, but they aren’t walking alone. Patients, doctors and other health care workers have stood shoulder-to-shoulder with members of the Minnesota Nurses Association over the last four days. So have members of other unions – teachers, musicians, construction workers […]

St. Paul clergy: Citywide earned sick time ordinance makes ‘common sense’

  Faith leaders from St. Paul today gathered in City Hall to support a citywide ordinance guaranteeing workers access to earned sick and safe time. “The scripture says we are one body, and when one part of the body suffers, the whole body suffers,” Pastor Ralph Baumgartner said. “And when 42 percent of workers in […]

Six for St. Paul City Council win Labor endorsement

The St. Paul Regional Labor Federation, AFL-CIO, with more than 100 affiliate unions representing 50,000 union members in the East Metro, has endorsed six candidates for St. Paul City Council on the Nov. 3 ballot. Read more about Ward 2 candidate Darren Tobolt here, and read profiles of the Labor-endorsed candidates for St. Paul school […]

Labor endorsed in Ward 2, Tobolt ready to stand up for working families ‘on day one’

When a non-union electrical contractor was undermining area wages and benefits on a project funded by Ramsey County several years back, IBEW Local 110’s Brian Winkelaar didn’t think twice about what to do. He called Darren Tobolt, County Commissioner Victoria Reinhardt’s longtime assistant. “I called him up and said, ‘Darren, how come they’re on this […]

St. Paul unions weigh support for campaign to pass citywide $15 minimum wage

  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 […]

St. Paul City Council takes stance against ‘poor trade policies,’ including fast track

The St. Paul City Council took up the fight to stop fast track Wednesday, when members unanimously approved a resolution “opposing the extension of bad trade policies.” “The people of the City of Saint Paul have the best chance to benefit from pending trade and investment agreements only if the process by which they are […]

Five running for St. Paul City Council gain labor endorsement

Five candidates for St. Paul City Council, including one in the contested Ward 2 race, will take labor endorsements from the East Metro’s largest union federation into precinct caucuses Feb. 3. Delegates to the St. Paul Regional Labor Federation, AFL-CIO, voted Jan. 14 to endorse Darren Tobolt in Ward 2, where Council Member Dave Thune […]

Noel Nix is labor’s choice in St. Paul’s Ward 1 race

Noel Nix is a familiar face to residents of St. Paul’s Ward 1, and he is the labor-endorsed candidate in a special election to fill the ward’s seat on the St. Paul City Council this year. Nix worked as an aide to former Council Member Melvin Carter, who stepped down earlier this year, setting the […]