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Labor Report

10 Days for $10.10

Petition Senator Tartaglione speaks on the Senate floor about the importance of raising the minimum wage.

We kicked off “10 Days for $10.10” this week on the floor of the Senate. Following each of the next 10 session days (seven days are left in this campaign) one state senator who supports increasing PA’s minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 an hour will rise to speak.

I kicked things off on Monday with my personal petition. Sen. Art Haywood followed up on Tuesday. And, Sen. Judy Schwank delivered an impassioned plea for reasonableness – and a vote – on Wednesday.

You know as well as I know that the only thing consistent with what the opposition says about raising the minimum wage is that they’ve said the exact same things every time there has been a proposal to increase the base hourly rate. This needs to happen. My senate bills 195-199 can make it happen.

PaycheckMinimum Wage Elsewhere

While $15 an hour appears to have taken over the minimum wage debate in America, it’s not likely something you’ll hear anyone talk about in Harrisburg – unless I’m talking about it. But my legislative proposals stop at $10.10.

Nevertheless, cities are moving in on $15/hour; Los Angeles being one of them.

Meanwhile, Chicago’s new $10 minimum wage is a couple of weeks from being required by law, and the Windy City’s mayor is already asking workers to stay alert and report noncompliance with the new law.

Even if our minimum wage was $15 an hour many people who can only find those kinds of jobs still cannot afford the necessities of life, as Business Insider reported yesterday.

“According to the real-estate firm Zillow, renters on average should be spending about 30% of their wages on the cost of their residence to have enough money left over for other expenses … Zillow calculated what the minimum wage would have to be in various cities to meet that 30% threshold. It found that even $15 an hour would not be enough to cover the median rent in any of the 35 largest metro areas for a single person. Even if two people were contributing to rent, 24 cities would still be too expensive.”

To meet that 30 percent threshold in PA, Zillow said the minimum wage would have to be $15.67 an hour in Philly and $11.24/hour in Pittsburgh. At the very least, now you better understand why $7.25 is so pitiful.

Appreciating Apprentices

ApprenticesSen. Tartaglione shared her thoughts and support with apprentices from all over Pennsylvania on June 9th

There’s nothing like a worker who wants to learn and get better – so the Rotunda was a marvelous place to be on Tuesday when the Pennsylvania Apprentice Coordinators Association and the Pennsylvania State Building & Construction Trades Council held its 5th Apprenticeship Awareness Day.

Lots of people know about the benefits of apprentice programs. Pennsylvania is one of the best states for supporting them.

I was pleased to be amongst the colorful sea of t-shirts, and shared my thoughts and support. Watch and listen – HERE.