Not a Pretty Picture

posted by Will Wilson

From Google, state-by-state and county-by-county graphs of unemployment figures for easy comparison. Soon, we'll be able to do this with more data.

Hat tip: Marginal Revolution

Weingarten Willing to Talk

posted by Alan Greenblatt

The election of Randi Weingarten as president of the American Federation of Teachers this past summer signaled a greater willingness from that union to accept that new ideas and education "reforms" are inevitable. In a speech today at the National Press Club, Weingarten underscored such openness, saying that her union would be open to discussing nearly all ideas, but expects and demands a role in shaping new policies.

"No issue, with the exception of vouchers, is off the table for discussion," Weingarten said. "What's going to be high on our list is anything that's good for kids and fair to teachers."

Among the traditionally contentious ideas that Weingarten suggested a willingness to consider are the accountability and standards movement exemplified by the federal No Child Left Behind law; differential or merit pay; and tenure.

"Some see tenure not as fairness but as a fortress that prevents incompetent teachers from ever being fired," she said. "It isn't, and it shouldn't be."

Weingarten suggested that changes to tenure could be achieved if more districts adopted the model pioneered in Toledo and other AFT-represented districts, where teachers have engaged in a peer-review process.

The Washington Teachers Union, an AFT affiliate, is currently engaged in a high-profile negotiation with D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty and Chancellor Michelle Rhee. Rhee's plan would greatly boost teachers salaries, but at the expense of tenure and seniority. The Washington Post reported Sunday that Fenty and Rhee are considering actions to circumvent the union by converting the system to one structured around charter schools.

In addition to signaling her desire for a collaborative approach, Weingarten called for more investment in education. She warned of the dangers if state and local governments, currently hard hit by the economic downturn, balance their budgets on the backs of schools. "This disinvestment in education may help state and local bottom lines this year," she said, "but it will create a race to the bottom that will affect our economy for years to come."

Oregon Indexes Min Wage, Sky Doesn't Fall

posted by Christopher Swope

As 13th floor readers know, I believe that indexing the minimum wage to inflation would be an excellent way to get Democrats and Republicans to stop arguing about it all the time. Turns out six states -- Arizona, Colorado, Missouri, Montana, Nevada and Ohio -- are voting on this very idea next week.

Today's WSJ weighs in on the issue with a look (free WSJ link today!)at how indexing has worked in Oregon since 2002. There is, of course, an example confirming the business lobby's worst fears: a restaurant owner says he hires fewer employees because his profit margins are squeezed.

But here's the money quote:

Oregon's experience suggests the most strident doomsayers were wrong. Private, nonfarm payrolls are up 8% over the past four years, nearly twice the national increase. Wages are up, too. Job growth is strong in industries employing many minimum-wage workers, such as restaurants and hotels. Oregon's estimated 5.4% unemployment rate for 2006, though higher than the national average, is down from 7.6% in 2002, when the state was emerging from a recession.

Maximum Wage?

posted by Zach Patton

Whether you agree with Chicago Mayor Richard Daley's opinion on a 'big box' minimum wage, you can see his point: If your city requires chain-store retailers to pay higher wages, it may negatively impact their likelihood of moving to your city.

But now he's proposing something that's a little harder to swallow: He wants a national minimum wage that could not be increased by local governments.

"That has to be increased (nationally) because if we increase ours and no one increases theirs in the suburban area, we're up here and you're down there."

Daley has said that the difference can create an exodus of jobs from Chicago. 

The mayor disagrees on the issue with Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who has already implemented a statewide minimum wage of $6.50 an hour for workers over 18 and $6 for those under 18.  The federal minimum wage is $5.15 an hour.

Daley said he believes he won wide acceptance of the idea among Democrats Thursday, when he spoke with House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) and U.S. Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.), and said he believes some Republicans are beginning to accept the idea.

So he wants to be legislatively hamstrung by the feds? Doesn't this seem unfair to other communities that do want a living wage?

Living Wage Lives and Lets Live

posted by Zach Patton

Santa Fe has had a living wage since 2004. It's actually the highest minimum-wage requirement of its kind in the country.

The law raised the city's minimum wage from the federal level of $5.15 an hour to $8.50 an hour, a 65 percent increase. Earlier this year, the amount was bumped to $9.50 an hour.

An interesting new study on the wage, released by the Bureau of Business and Economic Research at the University of New Mexico, looks at the effects of the wage. The verdict: There really aren't any effects.  At least not financial ones.

According to the study, the wage requirment hasn't hurt Santa Fe businesses at all. But it hasn't spurred the economy, either.

As the Santa Fe Living Wage Network's Carol Oppenheimer told the Albuquerque Journal, "This program was never passed as an economic stimulus package. ... It was passed in the context of a moral framework that said no one should have to work on the lower wages."

Judging the moral impact on Santa Fe is a little tricky. But economically at least, the living wage hasn't hurt or helped.

Federally-Mandated Pay Decrease

posted by Alan Greenblatt

Minimum wage hikes remain a hot issue in states, but as you probably know, Congress looks likely to approve the first national increase in nine years. One provision will bother workers in some states, however.

Federal law sets the minimum wage for tip workers at $2.13 an hour, plus tips. But in seven states, tips don't count toward the total minimum wage. Restaurants and other employers in industries where tips are pro forma still have to pay the regular amount -- $6.75 in California, for instance. The new bill would override those states' policy.

"This bill would slash the salaries of thousands of workers. I strongly oppose it," said California Senator Dianne Feinstein. The Board of Supervisors in San Francisco, where the minimum wage is indexed to inflation, passed a resolution Tuesday bemoaning the effort.

It does look like another example of Washington politics trumping the idea of federalism.

UPDATE: A Referendum on Day Laborers?

posted by Zach Patton

Voters in Herndon, VA, ousted the mayor and two town council members who supported the construction of a city-financed center for day laborers.

I don't know too much about Herndon's situation specifically, but I wonder how much of this vote was based on local concerns, and how much was based on the fact that immigration is such a hot-button topic nationally right now. Like, would the vote have been different if the election had taken place a month ago, before immigration was as "on the radar" as it is right now?

PREVIOUSLY: A Referendum on Day Laborers?

A Referendum on Day Laborers?

posted by Zach Patton

Voters in Northern Virginia are heading to the polls today for town and city council races.

In the town of Herndon, the mayoral race could turn on a day-labor center opened by the city late last year. Before the official center opened, day laborers would gather in the parking lot of a 7-11 to look for work. Many of the laborers are believed to be illegal immigrants, and some residents said the city had no business making it easier for them to find work.

Herndon Mayor Michael O'Reilly supported the center. His challenger is a local resident who vocally opposed it. If O'Reilly loses, it will likely be blamed on his support of the day-labor facility.

Jonathan Walters' cover story in the May issue of Governing explores the issue of day laborers, and how localities around the country are trying to get a handle on the situation.

"We Need Some Stinkin' Badges"

posted by Josh Goodman

When Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa last week proposed hiring 1,000 new police officers over the next four years, most of the attention focused on the 155% trash fee increase he advanced for paying for it. However, in addition to asking where L.A. will find the money, just as important a question is where the city will find the cops.

In short, fewer people seem interested in being police officers today than in the past. This has led to a recruiting crisis that is serious enough that it has warranted front-page coverage in the Washington Post and the New York Times (as well as by Governing's own Otis White). In L.A. in particular, the police force already has more than 700 openings.

Experts suggest a variety of causes for the problem.

The Minimum Wage Momentum

posted by Josh Goodman

Although the minimum wage is always an issue for state legislators, last year and this year they have been especially active. At least nine states have passed increases in that time, the most recent being Maine and Arkansas just in the past few days.

Why the support for higher minimum wages? I see at least three reasons.