Archive for Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Lawmakers asked to increase state’s minimum wage
February 10, 2009
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Topeka — Advocates for labor and Kansans with disabilities urged lawmakers Tuesday to increase the state minimum wage, which at $2.65 per hour is the lowest in the nation.
Andy Sanchez, executive secretary and treasurer of the Kansas AFL-CIO, said increasing the state minimum wage would help the economy by putting “money in the hands of workers soon and the economy just as soon.”
He said the current state rate, which according to Department of Labor officials affects 20,000 Kansas workers, is an “embarrassment.”
Senate Bill 160, introduced by Sen. Marci Francisco, D-Lawrence, would increase the state minimum wage to $7.25 per hour on Sept. 1. The current federal minimum wage of $6.55 per hour is scheduled to increase to $7.25 per hour on July 24.
The Senate Commerce Committee held a public hearing on the bill but took no action. Chairman David Wysong, R-Mission Hills, said he would canvass committee members to see what they want to do.
“If it is thought we want to work this bill, it will be next week,” Wysong said.
Shannon Jones, executive director of the Statewide Independent Living Council, said more Kansans with disabilities would enter the work force and become “taxpayers rather than tax takers” if the state increased the wage rate.
Heidi Zeller of Lawrence, who is coordinator of the “Raise the Wage” project sponsored by the Kansas Action Network, said the federal poverty level for a single person is $10,830 per year, which is nearly double what the state minimum wage pays.
“We believe that a job should keep you out of poverty, not in poverty,” Zeller said.
But business groups opposed the bill. Those groups included the Kansas Chamber of Commerce, National Federation of Independent Business, Americans for Prosperity and Kansas Restaurant and Hospitality Association.
They argued that raising the minimum wage hurts low-skilled, entry-level employees and consumers because the additional costs will cause businesses to cut back on hiring or increase their prices for goods and services.
They also said the minimum wage should be abolished altogether.
“If one consenting adult agrees to work for another for $5 an hour, should the state step in and invalidate the agreement?” asked Derrick Sontag, state director of AFP-Kansas.
“The free market should determine wages,” said Kent Eckles of the Kansas Chamber of Commerce.
And Ron Hein, a lobbyist for the Kansas Restaurant and Hospitality Association, said the vast majority of food and beverage employees already pay in excess of the federal minimum wage. Hein said his association has yet to find a business paying the state minimum wage.
But Zeller said an increased minimum wage helps businesses because workers have more money to spend and employers save money through reduced employee turnover.
She said the biggest group of people earning the state minimum wage are in the category of care workers for children, the elderly and infirm, in addition to workers on small farms whose employers gross under $500,000 annually and do not produce for interstate commerce.
State Sen. Roger Reitz, R-Manhattan, said that although he supports measures to raise the state minimum wage, he wasn’t confident about this bill’s chances. He said his fellow Republicans, who control the Legislature, haven’t been interested in increasing the minimum wage.
More like this
- Measure to increase state minimum wage may be dead 13 comments / February 13, 2009
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- Advocates seek increase in state minimum wage 7 comments / February 19, 2008
- Bill proposes increasing minimum wage in state 21 comments / February 20, 2008
- Lobbyists take aim at state's minimum wage 7 comments / February 13, 2007
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10 February 2009
at 10:12 a.m.
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xbusguy (Anonymous) says…
I don't want a raise. I want a job.
10 February 2009
at 10:25 a.m.
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The_Bends (Anonymous) says…
A minimum wage above the equilibrium wage will create a contraction in labor demand. Translation: while some workers benefit from a nominal wage increase, other workers are put out of a job.This is yet another example of political demagoguery that will either be completely superfluous (if the new minimum wage remains below the equilibrium wage) or will put workers out of work (if the new minimum wage is above the equilibrium wage).Just what Kansans need—more disingenuous legislation like the superfluous Anti-Guantanamo prisoner legislation. At least the legislature realizes that further cuts to education spending will make future attempts at terrible legislation attractive to future, under-educated Kansas voters.
10 February 2009
at 11:28 a.m.
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xbusguy (Anonymous) says…
Larry- I agree. Entry level jobs are just that. Just because I may be hired at entry level, doesn't mean I am going to stay at entry level. What better chance to prove your worth than working a real job.
10 February 2009
at 11:48 a.m.
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rusty2 (Anonymous) says…
meanwhile, billions for wall street & bank bailouts - hey that's fair!
10 February 2009
at 1:13 p.m.
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shorttrees (Anonymous) says…
Like this will really matter? Federal law supercedes State on minimum wage, so all this would do is quit making Kansas look like Scrooge. It will affect very few paychecks (which they won't tell you) and especially won't affect the Restaurant Assn. Just a bunch more spin and “busy-work” from our legislators. Yes, we should do this, but mostly for appearances' sake.
10 February 2009
at 1:21 p.m.
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any (Anonymous) says…
Actually we don't have the lowest minimum wage. Some states don't have a minimum wage. http://www.dol.gov/esa/minwage/americ… guess I question why we'd worry about raising the minimum wage when we have to comply with the federal minimum wage. Seems redundant, and I think our Legislature can use its time better on other things.
10 February 2009
at 1:28 p.m.
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just_another_bozo_on_this_bus (Anonymous) says…
“The free market should determine wages,” said Kent Eckles of the Kansas Chamber.––––––––—If someone is working for $2.65, or even $5 an hour, it's desperation at work, not the free market.
10 February 2009
at 1:34 p.m.
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just_another_bozo_on_this_bus (Anonymous) says…
If you really want the “free market” to work, set a minimum wage at a level at which someone can realistically support themselves (but not necessarily a family.) Otherwise, goods and services which depend on exploitation wages are unfairly subsidized by the exploited workers, and the government and charitable programs, parents or even crime they rely on just to survive. End these subsidies, and consumers can make their purchasing decisions based on the true costs of the goods and services.
10 February 2009
at 1:52 p.m.
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Liberty_One (Anonymous) says…
bozo, there's no such thing as an “exploitation wage.” Slavery was outlawed by the 13th amendment. No one accepts a wage unless they freely choose to do so. In one thread you complain about jobs going to China, but here you promote an idea that will do more of the same. Why can't you statists see that you cause the problems of which you complain?
10 February 2009
at 4:17 p.m.
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edjayhawk (Anonymous) says…
I know plenty of waitresses that make $2.65 an hour. They have to count on a lot of tips to just break even.
10 February 2009
at 5:36 p.m.
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Omegatron (Anonymous) says…
“If one consenting adult agrees to work for another for $5 an hour, should the state step in and invalidate the agreement?” asked Derrick Sontag, state director of AFP-Kansas.Please. My first job, the employer was trying every trick in the book not to pay anybody anything, and hired illegals whenever possible just to save a buck. They even hired a retarded guy at low wage because they knew he wouldn't complain to anybody about his pay.To hell with government not stepping in and allowing employers to exploit whoever they want.
10 February 2009
at 5:50 p.m.
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sarahsmilehawk (Anonymous) says…
I don't think it's a lot to ask to make the state minimum wage equal to the federal minimum. The article says this affects 20,000 people. They deserve a paltry $7.25 an hour. I don't have any sympathy for a business that can't survive without paying an exploitative wage.
10 February 2009
at 6:20 p.m.
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just_another_bozo_on_this_bus (Anonymous) says…
“bozo, there's no such thing as an “exploitation wage.””That's ridiculous. We live in an economy and a society which by design have an unemployment rate that's consistently around 10%, although the rules about who is counted as “unemployed” mean that usually only about half that number is acknowledged. The effect, quite intended, is a level of desperation for a job, any job. This leaves them vulnerable to exploitation, and there is no shortage of unscrupulous employers willing to oblige.BTW, that drag on wages trickles up the economic chain— that is until you get the the upper 5% income bracket, who are the main beneficiaries of this culture of exploitation.
10 February 2009
at 6:26 p.m.
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beobachter (Anonymous) says…
Ideally the legislators should only receive state minimum wage. Even at that, most would be way overpaid for the work they do. Look at bills proposed so far this session.
10 February 2009
at 6:52 p.m.
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was_freashpowder2 (Alexander Neighbors) says…
well well well an employee is paid 7.50 an hour they take home .85% of that amount the other .15 % goes to Taxes so if the local city Govt wants more money they just increase the minimum wage causing the amount they receive in taxes to go up…… They are not doing it to help those poor poor people making less than 8.00 an hour they are doing it to make more money off of them……….. Crooked
10 February 2009
at 7:08 p.m.
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Godot (Anonymous) says…
Just an innocent, leading question. How many jobs has the US economy lost since Congress increased the minimum wage?
10 February 2009
at 7:52 p.m.
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Liberty_One (Anonymous) says…
bozo, there is no such thing. The only people with the power to exploit others work for the government. You don't understand money at all. If you artifically inflate wages, the purchasing power of those higher wages will go down, and you'll end up being paid the same no matter what. You're so caught up in the “exploitation of the workers” that you can't see that no matter what, people will never be paid more for their labor than the marginal utility of their work. They can't be, it's simply impossible and trying to will collapse the economy.
10 February 2009
at 9:12 p.m.
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Thinking_Out_Loud (Anonymous) says…
The_Bends makes a valid point, and one worth discovering.The underlying assumption, however, is that the equilibrium wage is below $7.25/hour. I doubt that this is the case….
10 February 2009
at 9:20 p.m.
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LarryNative (Anonymous) says…
Edjayhawk,Your friends must work at some real dumps that cater to the poor. The waitresses I work with average $18 an hour. I have worked in a lot of places and I have never seen a waitress or bartender walk out not making at least twice what a cook earns. In other words, your full of it. Minimum wage is for tipped employees and sixteen year olds. If you do not fall in that category, you have made some poor life decisions. You made your bed, now sleep in it!
10 February 2009
at 9:59 p.m.
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Bob_Keeshan (Anonymous) says…
Don't you love how the Kansas Chamber of Commerce is actually for abolishing a minimum wage?The minimum wage isn't really about protecting workers, it is about protecting employers. It is about protecting businesses. It is about protecting the competitive market.The Kansas Chamber of Commerce is, in reality, the most anti-business organization in the state. Coming in a close second is the NFIB chapter.Think about it, “independent business” lobbying group. You wipe out the minimum wage, it isn't the independent businesses who will be able to attract customers and therefore attract employees. Only the corporations will survive.
10 February 2009
at 10:55 p.m.
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notajayhawk (Anonymous) says…
The minimum wage has never been enough to put people above the poverty level, let alone support themselves. Guess what - it was never intended to. If just half the people in Kansas worked, that 20,000 represents just 15 people out of every thousand. And I seriously doubt that anyone - *ANYONE* - is working a $2.65/hour job as their sole means of support. The people making that wage are usually tipped employees (if you can't make $5/hr in tips to make up the difference, you stink as a waiter, get a new job). Or piecework or flat rate or some other arrangement that works out to be much higher than the minimum. 20,000 he__ - I want you to find just one person, just one, who works a 40 hour week for $2.65/hour.If the boohoozos of Larryville would get off their 'get the jack-booted heel of the rich off the throat of the proletariat' rant for a moment or two, they just might realize that the minimum wage not only was never intended to be a living wage, there's no reason for it to be one. Has it occurred to boohoozo that many minimum wage workers are in part-time after school jobs for kids living at home, that have no need or desire to support themselves?Maybe boohoozo's just bitter because he can't qualify for that mortgage pedaling along on his paper route.******************************shorttrees (Anonymous) says… “Like this will really matter? Federal law supercedes State on minimum wage, so all this would do is quit making Kansas look like Scrooge.”The federal minimum wage only applies to businesses that are involved in interstate commerce. That's all the fed can regulate. That actually applies to most businesses, but not all. And, btw, the federal minimum has exceptions - like tipped employees only have to make half the minimum.
10 February 2009
at 11:03 p.m.
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texburgh (Anonymous) says…
Americans for Poverty. They also argued in their state budget proposal that it would help Kansans if we raised state university tuition to the same level as private university tuition. Keep more in poverty; that's more for the Koch Brothers and AFP.
11 February 2009
at 2:32 a.m.
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Bad_Brad (Anonymous) says…
Am I missing something here?The state minimum wage of $2.65 is meaningless. Any employer in the state is bound by the federal minimum wage of $6.55.The federal minimum wage is set to increase to $7.25 on 7/24 of this year. Francisco's proposal is to increase the KS minimum wage to $7.25 on 9/1. What exactly does that accomplish?
11 February 2009
at 9:12 p.m.
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KatWrangler (Anonymous) says…
What a disgrace. If you own a business and can't afford to pay a liveable wage to your employee, then don't have a business.To Senator Reitz and your Repub friends in Topeka, I don't know how you sleep at night. You should be ashamed of yourselves.