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Viewing Category: Labor
Other strategies emerging to overturn employer sanction lawPHOENIX -- Some Arizona business owners hope to convince the state's non-Hispanic majority it is in their interest to quash any laws that punish companies that knowingly hire undocumented workers.Permalink [Filed under: Business, Economy, Immigration, Labor, Legislature]Mac Magruder who heads the Wake Up Arizona! coalition, said Tuesday the new statute will have "devastating unintended consequence" on the state's economy. And he said the effects will be broader than just driving out the possible 500,000 people in this state illegally. "When brown people lose their jobs, white people will lose their jobs," he said.
He noted the law, which takes effect Jan. 1, allows a judge to suspend a firm's license to do business for up to 10 days. A second violation within three years results in permanent loss of the right to do business in Arizona.
Posted by Editor at 07:45 AM
Business bloc takes aim at new lawA group of Arizona businesses is trying to persuade the public that a new immigration law, intended to punish companies that hire illegal immigrants, could kill jobs and wreck the state’s economy.Permalink [Filed under: Business, Economy, Immigration, Labor]The group, called Wake Up Arizona!, launched a publicrelations campaign Tuesday saying it’s considering a ballot initiative to counter the law, considered one of the toughest in the nation. Starting next year, companies that knowingly hire undocumented workers will have their state business licenses suspended or revoked.
Mac Magruder, chairman of the group and owner of a chain of McDonald’s franchises, said the law will cripple local economies and cause job losses that will affect both illegal immigrants and legal residents.
Posted by Editor at 07:57 AM
Arizona could have the toughest employer sanction lawPHOENIX - If it becomes law, Arizona's illegal immigration bill that cracks down on employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants would become the toughest in the U.S.Permalink [Filed under: Business, Immigration, Labor]The bill passed the Legislature last week and would shut down businesses twice caught knowingly hiring illegal immigrants.
Gov. Janet Napolitano has until next Monday to sign it, veto it or let it become law without her signature.
Posted by Editor at 07:52 AM
Bill eases wage rules for hiring the disabledState lawmakers voted Tuesday to give some additional legal protections to firms that employ the disabled but don’t pay them the new votermandated minimum wage.Permalink [Filed under: Business, Disabled, Economy, Labor, Legislature]HB2245 spells out that these companies cannot be prosecuted if they are following the guidance of a new policy adopted earlier this year by the state Industrial Commission. That policy redefined what is an “employee,” meaning who is covered — and who is not — by the new law.
Posted by Editor at 07:43 AM
Napolitano gets illegal-hiring billPHOENIX — The Legislature on Wednesday passed a comprehensive plan that would put firms that repeatedly and knowingly hire illegal immigrants out of business in Arizona.Permalink [Filed under: Economy, Governor, Immigration, Labor, Legislature]The bill says a single violation could suspend a company's state licenses for up to 10 days. But House Bill 2779 also would let judges waive that penalty based on factors ranging from the number of illegal workers employed to the duration of employment.
Companies also would be able to present evidence that their directors or officers were not involved in the hiring. But a second violation within three years would mean permanent revocation of state licenses.
Posted by Editor at 07:34 AM
Senate approves bill to hike Arizona workers' injury benefitsPHOENIX - The Senate on Monday approved a workers' compensation bill to carry out a business-labor compromise to increase Arizona's caps on benefits received by employees who are hurt on the job.Permalink [Filed under: Economy, Labor, Legislature]The Senate's 24-2 vote sends the bill (HB2195) to the House, which previously considered a version of the bill without the caps increase.
Under the bill, raising the current cap would benefit workers making more than $28,800 annually.
Posted by Editor at 12:27 AM
Ariz. Senate backs workers' compensation dealPHOENIX - The Senate on Thursday signed off on a business-labor compromise that would increase Arizona's caps on workers' compensation benefits received by employees hurt on the job.Permalink [Filed under: Business, Economy, Labor, Legislature]Under a workers' compensation bill given preliminary approval on voice vote, the current $2,400 monthly cap on how much of an injured worker's pay can be used to calculate benefits would rise to $3,000 in 2008 and $3,600 in 2009. It then would be adjusted annually by the annual percentage increase in the mean wage paid in Arizona.
Workers get benefits for two-thirds of the cap amount. The current $2,400 monthly cap was set in 1999 and translates into a maximum monthly payment of $1,600. The benefits are not taxed.
Posted by Editor at 07:16 AM
Wage law still peril to jobs of disabledOne of the Valley's largest work centers for people with disabilities is still up and running, and nearly 100 employees furloughed this year are back at work.But the Centers for Habilitation, based in Tempe, is operating apprehensively.
If the Legislature doesn't step in before the session ends in a few weeks and create an exemption to the new state minimum wage law that allows lower wages to disabled employees, as many as 70 TCH workers could lose their jobs permanently. And in the meantime, the 40-year-old non-profit fears it could be vulnerable to lawsuits.
Permalink [Filed under: Disabled, Economy, Labor]
Posted by Editor at 07:12 AM
Governor vetoes day-laborer billRejecting the first prominent piece of immigration legislation to reach her desk this session, Gov. Janet Napolitano vetoed a bill Tuesday that would have barred people from disrupting traffic while seeking employment along public roadways.Permalink [Filed under: Business, Economy, Governor, Labor, Legislature]In a letter that accompanied her veto, she called the bill "vague, overbroad and discriminatory."
Posted by Editor at 07:11 AM
Lawmakers go after day laborersIn the first piece of immigration-related legislation to pass the Legislature this session, lawmakers today took aim at the mostly undocumented day laborers who clog streets and the people who hire them.Permalink [Filed under: Business, Economy, Immigration, Labor, Legislature]Workers who disrupt traffic while looking for day jobs near public streets would be guilty of criminal trespassing under the measure, which would be enforced by local police officers. Workers also would not be allowed to gather on private property without permission. The same penalty would apply to the people who hire day laborers.
The measure, House Bill 2589, is on its way to Gov. Janet Napolitano's desk.
Posted by Editor at 01:40 AM
Police union seeks 16% raiseThe Scottsdale police union is asking for a 16 percent pay raise, which could cost taxpayers $5.6 million and create tensions with other city workers, city officials said.Permalink [Filed under: Economy, Labor, Law Enforcement]The Police Officers of Scottsdale Association contends that city estimates of the pay raise are inflated by adding pay for special skills, such as translating and training, which apply to few officers.
Posted by Editor at 01:40 AM
Labor secretary pushes education of HispanicsSCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP)- U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao on Friday urged a group of Hispanic media publishers to convey the importance of education to its readers.Permalink [Filed under: Economy, Education, Federal Government, Labor]Chao, who spoke at the annual conference of the National Association of Hispanic Publications at a resort here, said the United States is transitioning to a knowledge-based economy and will need workers with higher skills and more education.
Posted by Editor at 06:53 AM
Labor official: All employees are welcome in state's unionsRebekah Friend took over earlier this month as the secretary-treasurer of the Arizona AFL-CIO. She sat down with Howard Fischer of Capitol Media Services to answer a few questions.Permalink [Filed under: Economy, Labor]
Posted by Editor at 06:34 AM
Labor chief rips union-backed billU.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao attacked the “card check” bill Friday at a news conference in Scottsdale, saying the union-backed legislation designed to make it easier to organize American workers would take away the “fundamental” American right to a secret-ballot election.Permalink [Filed under: Economy, Labor]The Employee Free Choice Act, the U.S. House passed 241-185 in March, is about to be taken up in the Senate, where Republicans are threatening a filibuster.
Posted by Editor at 01:26 AM
Teachers' pay falling, union saysTeacher pay in Arizona is growing more slowly than in other states, said researcher Ed Muir, who worked on the teacher salary survey using salary figures reported to the Arizona Department of Education.Permalink [Filed under: Education, Labor]Arizona dropped from 22nd in pay, or $42,529, in the 2002-03 school year to 40th in the 2004-05 school year, with an average of $39,095.
Posted by Editor at 01:24 AM
County workers go with unionPima County workers approved representation by the Service Employees International Union this week, setting the stage for the first major face-to-face labor negotiations between employees and top county management.Permalink [Filed under: City County Local Govt, Economy, Labor]Union representation was voted for Tuesday and Wednesday by 1,163 county employees, with 70 workers voting against.
Posted by Editor at 05:36 PM
Pima County workers join high-profile unionTUCSON, Ariz. - About 4,500 Pima County employees will be members of the Service Employees International Union in an effort to get better wages and benefits.Permalink [Filed under: City County Local Govt, Economy, Labor, Tucson]More than 1,200 county workers voted by a 17-to-1 margin to join the union on Tuesday and Wednesday. The results, announced Thursday, caused applause and cheers from labor organizers.
Posted by Editor at 06:18 AM
Statue of famed labor leader Cesar Chavez unveiledSan Luis, Ariz. - Facing the Gila Valley, a life-size bronze monument was dedicated Saturday afternoon in honor of the man who devoted much of his life fighting for the rights of migrants and farm workers.Permalink [Filed under: Agriculture, Economy, Labor]On what would have been his 80th birthday, a large crowd of community residents watched as a bronze statue of Cesar Chavez was unveiled on the grounds of a cultural center that also bears his name.
Posted by Editor at 07:11 AM
Arizona drops to No. 39 in per capita incomeFeel like you're not keeping pace with your cousin in Wyoming?Permalink [Filed under: Economy, Labor]New income figures released by the federal government may explain why. Arizona's per capita income increased just 4.8 percent last year, to $31,458, knocking down the state's national ranking one place to No. 39, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.
The typical American last year earned per capita income of $36,276, or 5.2 percent more than the year before. The income figures do not account for other sources of personal wealth such as stock market or property sale gains.
Posted by Editor at 07:32 AM
Disabled workers' pay wage debatedAnother hurdle has arisen in how to apply the state's minimum-wage law to developmentally disabled workers, even as one problem is nearing a solution.Permalink [Filed under: Business, Economy, Labor, Legislature]At issue is whether employers who pay these workers less than the state-mandated $6.75 an hour should get immunity from lawsuits over paying the lower wage.
The employers are seeking immunity from the Legislature, but the chairman of the House Rules Committee said their quest would violate state law.
Posted by Editor at 03:04 AM
Panel offers fix for disabled-minimum pay issueBy redefining what it means to be an "employee," state authorities hope to end a passionate debate over the state's new minimum-wage law that could allow developmentally disabled workers, in some cases, to be paid less than $6.75 an hour.Permalink [Filed under: Business, Economy, Labor, Legislature]Under a policy proposed by the state Industrial Commission, a person who works for his own primary or personal benefit can be considered a "trainee" and therefore not subject to the minimum wage.
Posted by Editor at 06:46 AM
Arizona House approves day labor billPHOENIX - The Arizona House approved a proposal Thursday that would prohibit people from standing on public streets and sidewalks for the purpose of offering or soliciting day labor work.Permalink [Filed under: Economy, Labor, Legislature]The proposed prohibition also would apply to people who offer or solicit day labor work on private property after the property owner asks them to leave.
Posted by Editor at 12:35 AM
Plan would exempt disabled from wage lawA proposal could at least temporarily exempt thousands of developmentally disabled workers who have received compensation that's below the federal minimum wage. The development would undo an unexpected negative impact of Arizona's new minimum wage law.Permalink [Filed under: Business, Economy, Labor]The state Industrial Commission's on Friday released a proposed policy that developmentally disabled workers who have state-sanctioned individual support plans and have participated in training and therapeutic programs don't fall under the legal definition of employees
Posted by Editor at 08:49 PM
House OKs day labor controlsThe Arizona House narrowly gave preliminary approval Thursday to a proposal to prohibit people from standing on public streets and sidewalks to offer or solicit day labor work.Permalink [Filed under: Business, Labor, Legislature]The prohibition also would apply to people who offer or solicit day labor work on private property after the property owner asks them to leave.
Day labor has been criticized at the Legislature in recent years.
Posted by Editor at 12:31 AM
Arizona Democrats back changes in union organizing rulesThe U.S. Chamber of Commerce plans on running television advertisements aimed at Democratic members of Congress -- including Tempe's Harry Mitchell and other Arizona Democrats -- over a controversial plan related to union organizing.Permalink [Filed under: Democrats, Labor]The U.S. Chamber and other business groups are fighting a Democratic and labor-backed plan that would allow for unions to organize workplaces by having workers sign union cards and not necessarily via a formal union election. Republicans and the Bush adminstration also oppose the measure.
Posted by Editor at 07:16 AM
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