Subject: Minumum Wage Victory in Eau Claire Date: Wed, 25 May 2005 07:53:12 -0500 Message-ID: <BDD0A3EABE40F04A8C7200805EDE5A6A02DE96F6@PEPSI.uwec.edu> From: "Richmond, Rick" <rrichmon@uwec.edu>
Yesterday, May 24, the Eau Claire City Council agreed to raise the local
minimum wage to $6.65/hour in three 50-cent increments. A number of
SFPJ-list subscribers assisted in this effort -- thanks to all!
----- Original Message -----
From:
Sent: Tuesday, May 24, 2005 8:47 PM
Subject: A VICTORY FOR CITIZENS!!
A VICTORY FOR ALL! MINIMUM WAGE WILL INCREASE IN EAU CLAIRE!
On Tuesday night, the Eau Claire City Council voted "YES" to raising the
minimum wage in Eau Claire. The ordinance calls for 3 50-cent increases
over the next year, to $6.65 an hour.
This is a victory for all of the hard working people of our city who
deserve to be able to afford such things as healthcare, education,
childcare as well as the necessities of life. Furthermore, local
business will be positively effected, as people will have more
disposable income to spend at them.
We must thank the City Council, especially the members that voted "yes"
for the increase. Toby Biegel, Dallas Neville, Kerry Kincaid, Terri
Stanley, Beryle Middleton and Bob Von Haden all voted yes, and should be
strongly commended. Dave Adler, Hal Davis, Ray Hughes and Dave Duax
voted no.
We must also thank Citizens for a Fair Wage. CFW initiated this
endeavor and never gave up. Their efforts made this possible. Thanks
to everyone, especially Mike Turner, Mark Williams, Dave Carpenter,
Laura Hoffman, Tom Kemp, Andrew Werthmann, Bruce Honadel, Joel
Nilsestuen, John DeRosier, Rick Richmond, Brandon Buchanan, Jeremy
Gragert, Katy Wineke, many AFSCME members, Ashley Wickenhauser, Jon
Radcliffe, and lots of other people who made this a success. Thank you
also to those that showed up to our rally on Monday night and the City
Council meetings. Your presence made a difference.
In the coming weeks, our state legislators may attempt to override our
hard work and strip us of our local right to decide our own wage levels.
Make sure to call them and let them know that you favor local decision
making in regards to minimum wage levels. Our efforts forced
legislators in Madison to act on this issue, and if they take away our
municipal rights, we cannot pressure them again in the future. Let us
never give up our ability to make change through local grassroots
efforts.
Thanks again to everyone who made this possible. Eau Claire has scored
a decisive victory, and has shown our state where we stand when it comes
to rewarding the hard working people of our community. We should all
feel proud to be residents of Eau Claire!!