Labor & Economy
Rally to Raise L.A. County’s Living Wage
In 1999 the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved a Living Wage Ordinance applicable to private businesses that contract with the county to provide certain services, including landscaping, janitorial and security. The reason for the ordinance was simple: The state’s minimum wage at the time — $5.75 per hour—was insufficient and the failure of some county contractors to pay their workers living wages was placing financial burdens on L.A. County by causing these employees to use social and health services provided by the county.
The board set the living wage initially at $9.46 per hour without health benefits, or at $8.32 per hour if an employer offered health benefits worth at least $1.14 per hour. Since then, the living wage has been raised only once, in 2006, when the board approved an increase to the current level of $11.84 per hour without health benefits, or $9.64 with health benefits valued at $2.20 per hour. To put it mildly, the county’s living wage since then has not kept pace with the cost of living. The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics calculates that since 1999 the cost of living in the Los Angeles metropolitan area has risen at nearly twice the rate of the living wage. The cost of living, as measured by the Consumer Price Index, has jumped by more than 44 percent – while the living wage has risen by only 25 percent. Health care costs in particular have risen far beyond what the current Living Wage Ordinance contemplated.
To make matters worse, the cost of living in the Los Angeles metropolitan area has risen substantially since 2004. Updated to account for inflation, that $12.90-per-hour figure would now be $15.96 per hour. That is why tomorrow, Tuesday, August 27, a rally will be held to urge the supes to take a new look at the county’s living wage and to strongly encourage them to raise it to a more reasonable level.
What: Rally to increase the county’s living wage.
When: Tuesday, August 27, noon.
Where: Kenneth Hahn Hall of Administration, 500 W. Temple St., downtown L.A.
More Info: (213) 368-8650 or see flyer here.
California Often Leads Change, but Not for Single-Payer Health Care
An Author Reflects on the Effort to Rebuild L.A. After the ‘Violent Spring’ of 1992
A Whole-Person Approach to Combating Homelessness
Regional U.S. Banks Sharply Expand Lending to Oil and Gas Projects
Oil Companies Must Set Aside More Money to Plug Wells, a New Rule Says. But It Won’t Be Enough.
Los Angeles’ Black Churches Join National Effort to Support Dementia Patients and Their Families
Critical Audit of California’s Efforts to Reduce Homelessness Has Silver Linings
Despite Promises of Transparency, California Justice Department Keeps Probe into L.A. County Sheriff’s Department Under Wraps
The Mission to Save the World Through Regenerative Farming
On the Chopping Block: California’s Climate Program for Low-Income Housing
The Transatlantic Battle to Stop Methane Gas Exports From South Texas
A Whole-Person Approach to Combating Homelessness
Street Artists Say Graffiti on Abandoned L.A. High-Rises Is Disruptive, Divisive Art
Dispelling the Stereotypes About California’s Low-Wage Workers
An Author Reflects on the Effort to Rebuild L.A. After the ‘Violent Spring’ of 1992
Los Angeles Hotel Workers Could Use the 2028 Olympics to Their Advantage
Organizing the Slopes
California Often Leads Change, but Not for Single-Payer Health Care
New Mexico Governor Vetoes Tax Break for Wells After Pushback
Climate + Young Voters = Biden Victory, Right? It’s More Complicated Than That.
CLASS WAR: The Temecula School Board Battle
Excavating the Future: Stopping AAPI Hate
Excavating the Future: Stopping AAPI Hate
Excavating the Future: Guarding the Hidden Archive
Excavating the Future: Breaking the Silence
Excavating the Future: Guarding the Hidden Archive
ILL HARVEST
Kaiser Therapists: Strike Is About Complying With the Law
‘What They Need Is Someone at Their Side’
Kaiser Therapists Say Patient Neglect Compels Them to Strike
-
Latest NewsApril 10, 2024The Transatlantic Battle to Stop Methane Gas Exports From South Texas
-
Latest NewsApril 23, 2024A Whole-Person Approach to Combating Homelessness
-
Latest NewsMarch 27, 2024Street Artists Say Graffiti on Abandoned L.A. High-Rises Is Disruptive, Divisive Art
-
State of InequalityApril 11, 2024Dispelling the Stereotypes About California’s Low-Wage Workers
-
Latest NewsApril 24, 2024An Author Reflects on the Effort to Rebuild L.A. After the ‘Violent Spring’ of 1992
-
State of InequalityMarch 28, 2024Los Angeles Hotel Workers Could Use the 2028 Olympics to Their Advantage
-
Striking BackApril 12, 2024Organizing the Slopes
-
State of InequalityApril 25, 2024California Often Leads Change, but Not for Single-Payer Health Care