Tag: minimum wage
House subcommittee kills bills to raise minimum wage
The GOP-majority Commerce and Labor Subcommittee #2 today killed three bills that would have raised the minimum wage in Virginia.
Senate committee blocks minimum wage increase
A Senate committee failed to pass two measures that would have seen an increase in Virginia’s minimum wage.
Virginia Republicans swinging, missing with voters on issues
Virginia Republicans might be misreading public sentiment on Gov. Terry McAuliffe’s push to restore the voting rights of ex-felons.
Poll: Obamacare a 2016 campaign issue?
Republicans would love Obamacare to be a campaign issue this fall. They will be disappointed.
Senate committee advances bill to limit wages for local workers
A Senate committee voted to advance a bill barring localities from requiring employers to offer pay or benefits above the minimum levels laid out in state and federal law.
Ken Plum: A more realistic minimum wage
Twenty-nine states and the District of Columbia and 23 U.S. cities have raised the minimum wage as a way to reduce income inequality.
Minimum wage bills killed in Virginia Senate
This afternoon, on a series of party-line votes, Senate Republicans shot down Democratic efforts to improve the economic security of working families.
House Republicans block minimum wage, paid sick leave bills
The House Commerce and Labor Subcommittee #1 effectively killed four bills that would have raised the minimum wage in Virginia.
Hillary Clinton voices support for minimum wage increase in Virginia
As the Virginia General Assembly reconvenes, Hillary Clinton offered her support for proposed measures to increase the minimum wage for Virginia’s workers.
Raising minimum wage is smart business and smart politics
Raising the minimum wage makes good business sense whether you are a Republican, Democrat or independent. It should not be a partisan issue.
Ken Plum: Not up to the living wage challenge
ProgressVA sponsored the “Live the Wage Challenge” asking elected officials, community leaders, advocates, and everyday citizens to walk in the shoes of a minimum wage worker by living on a minimum wage budget for one week.
What do we want? Virginia voters leaning Republican, but support Democratic issues
Polling done this week by Christopher Newport University shows that Virginia voters are leaning Republican in the 2015 Virginia General Assembly races. But at the same time, voters are showing strong support for policy positions on key issues like minimum wage, gun control, payday lending restrictions and redistricting reform advocated by Democratic candidates.
Tim Kaine introduces Senate bill to raise minimum wage
Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine joined U.S. Senator Patty Murray and 31 of their Senate colleagues in introducing the Raise the Wage Act, legislation that would raise the federal minimum wage to $12 by 2020 and help expand economic opportunity for hardworking families.
Walmart’s small wage increase not enough for employees, taxpayers
You don’t need a Walmart front-door greeter to find the flaw in the company’s recently announced boost in worker wages: it’s not enough.
State Senate committee kills minimum wage bill
In a party-line vote this afternoon, Republicans on the Senate Commerce & Labor Committee defeated Senator Dave Marsden’s SB 681, a bill to raise the minimum wage in Virginia to $10.10.
Ken Plum: Virginia General Assembly session under way
The General Assembly convened for its annual session on January 14. Although the session scheduled to adjourn at the end of February is termed “the short session,” it will have a full agenda of opportunities and challenges.
Boost business by raising minimum wage
As a restaurant owner operating in four states and looking to expand, I’m happy to see the minimum wage going up in 21 states to kick off the new year. I’d like to see the federal minimum wage increase as well to benefit business and our economy nationwide.
For sale: Stone Soup Books and Cafe
Absent a buyer, Stone Soup Books and Café is set to close its doors at the end of the year. Owner Mary Katherine Froelich cites the changing nature of the book industry, with increasing market share going to Amazon.com for hardcovers and paperbacks and the rise of e-books, as the key factor.
Report: Full-time working Virginians lack living wage
Only 26 percent of all full-time workers in Virginia earn a wage that will allow a single working parent with two children to make ends meet.
Ken Plum: From polarization to compromise
The Senate is polarized between opposing points of view with a willingness to compromise being seen as a sign of weakness.
Jim Webb for president: Who woulda thunk it?
The last place that Jim Webb seemed to want to be was there. There, this particular afternoon, was Court Square Theater, toward the end of his 2006 Senate race.
Creigh Deeds: Vote for Mark Warner on Nov. 4
My friend, Mark Warner is running for re-election to the U.S. Senate because he believes that all Virginians should get a fair shot at success.
Walk in their shoes
I’m a CEO with a GED, and I have walked in the shoes of a minimum wage worker. I know from experience that it’s a tougher road today.
Virginia families need higher wages, Medicaid expansion
A new report shows that in Virginia, families are struggling with the reality of making ends meet on a limited budget while state legislators refuse to implement life and cost savings by expanding Medicaid.
Warner campaign memo on Greenbrier Senate debate
In tomorrow’s debate between Senator Mark Warner and Ed Gillespie, Virginians will see a stark contrast between two candidates with different histories in Virginia.
President Obama: Let’s go out there and work
President Obama at a private event in Los Angeles: “I’ve got two years left in this presidency. I want to get a whole bunch of stuff done. I need your help. So let’s go out there and work.”
President Obama in Austin, Texas, speaking on economy
President Obama speaks at an event in Austin, Texas, on the economy, jobs and the political culture in Washington, D.C.
Democrats say Ed Gillespie is out of touch on minimum wage issue
What is the face of a minimum wage worker? Republican Senate candidate Ed Gillespie thinks he knows.
President Obama on the latest jobs report
We just got a jobs report today showing that we’ve now seen the fastest job growth in the United States in the first half of the year since 1999.
Give college graduates a future with real freedom: Freedom from debt
For members of the college and high school classes of 2014, and for past graduates, this effort to tackle the student debt issue is sorely needed.
Tim Kaine comments on GOP move to block minimum wage vote
U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine released the following statement after the Senate failed to advance legislation that would raise the minimum wage.
Michael Petit: Raise the minimum wage
On Wednesday this week, the United States Senate will hold a vote to raise the minimum wage, currently at $7.25 an hour, by 95 cents a year for the next three years. It will become $10.10 an hour in 2016.
Luz Vega-Marquis: A living wage is an equal voice
Although the terms “minimum wage” and “living wage” are sometimes used interchangeably, their meanings are quite different. A minimum wage is the lowest a business can legally pay. A living wage is what its workers need to meet their families’ basic needs – to stave off the choice between a gallon of gas and a gallon of milk.
Poll: Virginia voters give McAuliffe OK grade, support minimum wage hike
Virginia voters say 57-32 percent that they are optimistic about the next four years with their new governor, Terry McAuliffe, and give him a cautious 44-29 percent approval rating, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today.
Ken Plum: Making the grade
At a time when quality reviews and accountability measures result in more activities being given a letter grade, it is appropriate that legislative sessions receive the same treatment.
Gina Schaefer: Can’t build a strong economy on weak minimum wage
Our starting pay for sales associates is $10. We know that gradually raising the minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 an hour makes good business sense.
House committee kills minimum wage increase
A voice vote in the House Commerce and Labor committee killed a measure to increase the minimum wage in Virginia. The bill, SB 590 (Sen. Dave Marsden, D-Fairfax), would have raised the state minimum wage from $7.25 to $9.25 incrementally over the next two years.
Bruce Elder ends congressional campaign: Fighting cancer
Democrat Bruce Elder announced today he is ending his campaign for U.S. Congress in the Sixth District due to being diagnosed with cancer.
State Senate passes minimum wage increase
The Virginia Senate voted Tuesday 20-20 to pass a bill that would raise the state minimum wage to $9.25. The vote took place along party lines, with all Democrats supporting and all Republicans opposed. Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam broke the tie.
State Senate committee reports minimum wage bill
Monday afternoon, the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor voted 10-6 to report a bill that would raise the state minimum wage to $9.25. The vote took place along party lines, with all Democrats supporting and all Republicans opposed.
Ken Plum: Closing the income gap
Between 2007 and 2012, the median wages of Virginia’s highest income earners rose by 8 percent while the lowest income families’ wages shrank by 10 percent, according to an analysis by the Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis.
Sherry Stewart Deutschmann: Low minimum wage is bad for women, families and business
As a small business owner myself, I don’t see the logic in business people arguing against increasing the minimum wage. It’s just not logical to pay people a wage that doesn’t even cover basics like food, housing, utilities and transportation needed to get to work.
David Bolotsky: A business owner’s case for raising minimum wage
What if we could create a program that would strengthen our tax base, make government spending more fiscally responsible and provide a powerful financial incentive to low-income workers? It sounds too good to be true. But it already exists and dates back to 1938 – the minimum wage.
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