NEWS

Join Us for Minimum Wage Bill Ceremony THIS MONDAY.

Thu, 14 May 2009 17:00:47 -0500

Raise The Wage Activists:

Great News! Governor Mark Parkinson and Kansas Legislators will be hosting a bill ceremony to mark the historic passage of SB 160, the bill to raise the Kansas Minimum wage from $2.65 to $7.25 effective Jan 1st, 2010. The event will take place at on MONDAY, 10:30 AM at the Reardon Civic Center, 520 Minnesota Ave, Kansas City Kansas.

Everyone is invited. Please join us in celebrating the passage of Kansas's new minimum wage.

Here is the location on Google Maps:

Here is a link to the facebook event.

Hope to see you there!

Thanks,

Jake Lowen
President, Kansas Action Network.

Media Advisory on Passage of SB160

Fri, 1 May 2009 20:05:02 -0500

Media contact: Jake Lowen, 316-213-8716, for
Raise the Wage, a project of the Kansas Action Network

Press Release for immediate distribution:

A Salute to All Who Worked to Raise the Minimum Wage in Kansas

Friday, May 1, 2009 – A week ago, Governor Kathleen Sebelius signed into law Senate Bill 160, which raises the Kansas minimum wage from $2.65 an hour to $7.25 an hour, effective January 1, 2010. This is a major step forward for workers in Kansas, so today – May 1st, International Workers Day – we salute everyone who helped make this happen.

An estimated 20,000 workers will benefit, including workers in about a dozen job categories who are not covered by the federal minimum wage: childcare and elder care workers, domestic service workers, some micro-industrial and micro-farm workers, and people employed in several other fields. Nationally, over two thirds of such workers are women; the majority work at least 30 hours a week; under 20% are teens; and four fifths have high school diplomas.

Thanks to the supporters and sponsors of SB160, these workers will get a raise in 2010. This was our goal when, almost two years ago to the day, we founded “Raise the Wage Kansas” – and we are deeply gratified by the support we have received in those two years from countless groups and individuals.

We thank everyone who worked in our energetic grassroots Raise the Wage campaigns in Wichita, Topeka, and Kansas City Kansas. We are grateful to everyone who helped to pass an ordinance in July 2008 to raise the minimum wage in Kansas City Kansas. This was a trailblazing step that showed Kansas the way forward.

We received indispensable help from Let Justice Roll, the United Church of Christ, Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, United Methodist Church, American Friends Service Committee, Presbyterian Church, Adorers of the Blood of Christ, Kansas AFL-CIO, Wichita-Hutchinson Labor Federation, Tri-County Labor Council, Interfaith Workers Justice, United Auto Workers, Midwest Sociological Society, and many other groups, especially local faith and community groups.

Hundreds of Raise the Wage supporters circulated petitions, organized events, met with legislators, called friends, and otherwise sought to get the word out. They succeeded! And many elected officials showed initiative and responsiveness. We were deeply pleased that SB160 passed by large majorities in both the House and Senate.

Now, Kansas will have a state minimum wage that matches the federal minimum wage. It was in 1972 that César Chavez of the United Farm Workers coined a slogan that still resonates – “Si, se puede,” “Yes, we can.” We hope others share our conviction that the success of Raise the Wage Kansas shows the continuing truth of this slogan.

Kansas Action Network is a 12-year-old coalition, with 30 affiliates, which works to promote economic and social justice.
We welcome inquiries from anyone who would like to know more about our past or would like to help us shape our future.

Victory!

Thu, 26 Mar 2009 16:41:02 -0500

HAPPY NEWS!!! The House voted 104 to 21 to RAISE THE WAGE! We are sooo close to winning this thing!
Next step: Since the House added three amendments (one of which ties the KS minimum wage to future federal wage increases), the Senate has to decide if it will concur or not with those amendments. That happens as early as Monday.
Thank you again all for your emails and phone calls! At one point, Rep. Grange, who introduced the bill on the floor today, was asked by another legislator, "What is the motivation for this bill?" Grange referenced "all the emails from constituents." So, your efforts truly make a difference!

Have a wonderful weekend, celebrate this victory, and I'll keep you posted as always.

Crazy Wage Story

Mon, 16 Mar 2009 08:42:18 -0500

The following was written by Pat O’Connor and appeared in the Wichita Eagle on Friday, March 13th

Crazy wage story
Who would work for $2.65 an hour? State legislators don't get paid much, that is true. But would they work for $2.65 an hour? Would they send their sons or daughters to a job that paid that little? The House Commerce and Labor Committee is considering Senate Bill 160, which would raise the Kansas minimum wage to $7.25 an hour.
For some reason, Kansas is seen as backward by the rest of the nation. I live here and I've lived other places. I don't feel like we are backward. But any crazy news story that comes along with a Kansas dateline is prominently featured in the national media. Is having and defending the lowest minimum wage in the United States another such story?
Who would benefit directly from the wage increase? Twenty thousand Kansans. Who would benefit indirectly? The state. We would be seen as an even better, more humane place to live and raise a family. Urge legislators to pass the bill. Let's send some positive news out of our state.
PAT O'CONNOR
Wichita

Rally Summary and Next Steps

Sat, 7 Mar 2009 20:59:42 -0600

Thanks to everyone who attended the press conference and/or hearing yesterday!

While no definitive action was taken by Chairman Brunk, it's clear that we've made the opposition work harder this time around! Also, two of the business lobbyists who were supposed to testify against SB 160 left early or didn't show up at all. The one who was left - Ron Hein from the Restaurant & Hospitality Association - technically presented his testimony as "neutral" towards the bill (and was allowed to speak for a full 15 minutes!).

See here for photos from the two events: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?v=feed&id=621776667#/album.php?aid=2018318&id=1071433763&ref=mf (Thanks to Amy Robinson for taking photos!)

And here's a story from the Lawrence Journal World: http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2009/mar/05/increase-state-minimum-wage-faces-hurdles-house/.

The House Commerce & Labor Committee meets again on Tuesday, so we need to keep the pressure on them, particularly Steve Brunk. He represents the Bel Aire community, in the Wichita area, so if you live there, or know anyone who does, please encourage them to write to him urging that he LET THE COMMITTEE TAKE A VOTE ON SB 160. We believe there's enough support for this bill on the Committee and it would likely be voted out of committee favorably and sent to the House floor for a vote there. Once again, the contact list is below.

Thanks for everything you're doing! We'll keep you posted!

Heidi

Commerce and Labor:

Steven Brunk, Chairperson; 785-296-7645
Email: steve.brunk@house.ks.gov He's from Bel Aire (north Sedgwick county)

John Grange, Vice-chairperson; 785-296-7655
Email: john.grange@house.ks.gov ElDorado

Bob Bethell, 785-296-7616
Email: bob.bethell@house.ks.gov Alden He represents all of Rice county,
including Lyons and Sterling, and parts of Barton and Reno - (near Hutch) -
counties)

Elaine Bowers, 785-296-7644
Email: elaine.bowers@house.ks.gov Concordia (Lincoln, Cloud, Ottowa and NW
corner of Dickenson county)

Phil Hermanson, 785-296-7696
Email: phil.hermanson@house.ks.gov (south side of Wichita)

Dan Kerschen, 785-296-7699
Email: dan.kerschen@house.ks.gov Garden Plain (Kingman plus Southwest
Sedgwick county, i.e, Goddard, Cheney, Viola, etc.)

Jo Ann Pottorff, 785-296-7501
Email: joann.pottorff@house.ks.gov East side of Wichita, north of Kellogg

Willie Prescott, 785-296-6014
Email: willie.prescott@house.ks.gov Osage City, plus NE Franklin and
southcentral Douglas county.

Jill Quigley, 785-296-7682
Email: jill.quigley@house.ks.gov Lenexa

Scott Schwab, 785-296-7655
Email: scott.schwab@house.ks.gov Olathe

William Wolf, 785-296-7653
Email: bill.wolf@house.ks.gov Great Bend

Ron Worley. 785-296-7653
Email: ron.worley@house.ks.gov Lenexa

Louis Ruiz, Ranking Minority (Democratic) Member; 785-296-7122
Email: louis.ruiz@house.ks.gov Kansas City

Delia Garcia, 785-296-6838
Email: delia.garcia@house.ks.gov Wichita

Sean Gatewood, 785-296-7657
Email: sean.gatewood@house.ks.gov Topeka

Bob Grant, 785-296-7650
Email: bob.grant@house.ks.gov (from Cherokee, near Pittsburg)

Broderick Henderson, 785-296-7697
Email: broderick.henderson@house.ks.gov Kansas City

Shirley Palmer, 785-296-7698
Email: shirley.palmer@house.ks.gov Fort Scott (near Pittsburg)

Anne Tietze. 785-296-7669
Email: annie.tietze@house.ks.gov Topeka