A Proposal For a Livable Wage For Alachua County Workers
Throughout the nation a movement has been fomenting around the need for a living wage. Thousands of workers have gone on strike, politicians have stumped, and large companies such as McDonalds and Walmart have given token raises; but little has been done in Florida to make a living wage a reality. In Alachua County a […]
Didn’t Get Paid? Here’s what we can do about it.
Jennifer didn’t start off working for free but that’s how it ended up. She worked as a server for an unscrupulous restaurant owner who said he would pay her one thing and ended up paying her almost nothing. As a single mother, she was dependent on what little he did pay her (he even stole […]
Florida places in top three states for workplace deaths
A new report prepared by the South Florida Council on Occupational Safety and Health highlights the number of workplace fatalities in Florida with a focus on Southeast Florida. Florida regularly places in the top three states each year for workplace fatalities with industry trends closely following the national trends. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports […]
Florida Minimum Wages Fails Workers
Earlier this year the minimum wage was raised in Florida, but it didn’t make a big splash in the news. Why not? Because wages for the lowest paid workers in the state were raised by just 12 cents, to $8.05 an hour. While 12 cents an hour has little impact on a family’s budget, state […]
What’s Zapping Workers Wallets and Small Business Profits?
I worked for an apartment complex here in Tampa for over a year, and I had been promoted to maintenance supervisor. The complex was understaffed so I worked long hours, and I was constantly on call. Everyone at the complex knew how hard I worked and though it was tiring, I was proud of the […]
Minor League Baseball Pay: Way Off Base
Major League Baseball (MLB) Spring Training is in full swing, no pun intended, and yet Minor League Baseball (MiLB) players will work but not be paid. That is why the United Food and Commercial Workers’ union and other labor allies passed out leaflets at four major league spring training games to raise awareness among fans […]
Reel in closed door deals: Stop the TPP
Owning a small business in America is a dream come true, but it does not come without challenges.
Wage Theft: Limiting My Customers Buying Power
As a small business owner I am committed to compensating my employees for any and all of the work they complete for me, but I can’t solve the issue of wage theft alone. Wage theft ordinances are essential in setting a standard for employers and informing employees of their rights. While running my business part […]
The Ban on PLAs: A Bad Soap Opera
It reads like a bad soap opera. A local municipality is seduced by an out-of-town construction firm for a big public works project because they are the “low bidder”. (Roll Barry White soundtrack) The relationship starts off steamy but quickly erodes. The “low bidder” says all the right things and makes all the right promises. […]
Committee Meeting for the Secrecy Bill, March 4, 2015
The Florida Senate continued its push this week to take university job searches for presidents, provosts, and deans out of the sunshine so that these critical decisions could be made in the backrooms and cocktail bars of state politics. SB 182 would exempt portions of the search process from Florida’s cherished Sunshine and open records […]