Music, food and balloons filled South Park on Monday afternoon. But don’t get the wrong impression this party was all about work.

The second annual Labor Day picnic sponsored by the Kaw Valley Living Wage Alliance drew more than 200 people to the park for fun and discussion on the effort to approve a “living wage” ordinance in Lawrence.

Tracy Floreani, Lawrence, left, picks up some literature on the Kaw Valley Living Wage Alliance from Jennifer McAdam, Lawrence, a member of the alliance's steering committee. Also volunteering at the alliance's second annual Labor Day Celebration Monday in South Park was Laura Bennetts, Lawrence.

Such an ordinance would require firms that receive tax breaks from the city to pay their employees wages of 30 percent above the federal poverty guidelines, or about $9.39 per hour.

“A lot of people have Labor Day off. A lot of people use it for fun,” said Jennifer McAdam, Lawrence, one of the event’s organizers. “We’re reminding people it’s a holiday about work.”

The Kaw Valley Living Wage Alliance formed in fall 2000 and in June 2001 began collecting signatures on a petition supporting a living wage ordinance.

David Smith, Lawrence, a member of the group’s steering committee, said the 5,000 signatures already collected were a good start. He said the alliance didn’t have a target number of signatures.

“Our goal is to show Lawrence has a large base of support for a living wage ordinance,” Smith said. “We think 5,000 is a good start, but we think we can get thousands more.”

He said people in Lawrence are becoming more familiar with the living wage idea.

“More people know about the petition when we approach them, and they can usually explain the basics of a living wage to us,” Smith said. “We have an idea that can be stated in a sentence: If you get a tax break from the city, you should pay your workers enough to keep them out of poverty.”

McAdam said she expected the living wage ordinance to be an issue in the April 2003 city commission election.

“We’re going to make sure people are talking about it,” she said.

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