A famous example of chutzpah is that of the defendant who, having murdered his parents, throws himself upon the mercy of the court because he's an orphan.
Bluestem thought of that anecdote when we read this lament by Rep. Steve Drazkowski in Don Davis's article in the Stevens County Tmes, Raises coming to Minnesota state workers:
Tens of thousands of Minnesota state workers will get a raise after the House and Senate approved negotiated contracts.
Senators voted 56-10 Monday, March 26, to bump up pay for more than 30,000 workers by 2 percent this year and 2.5 percent next year. The House followed a few hours later with a 93-33 vote. . . .
The 30,000 workers had to wait since last fall to see if they would get raises. A legislative committee last Oct. 5 rejected state employee union contacts
"I think about the hard-working construction workers not getting these type of increases," Rep. Steve Drazkowski, R-Mazeppa, said at the time. "The people of Minnesota paying for the government are not making these kind of increases."
Why is this statement so brazen? Because Draz opposes prevailing wages for construction workers--and voted against giving minimum wage workers a raise.
Construction workers--on the payroll of private contractors--get paid prevailing wages if state funding is involved in paying for a project. According to the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry FAQ page about prevailing wages:
Prevailing wages are the wages required to be paid on state-funded construction projects. Wage rates are certified once a year in both highway/heavy and commercial type construction.
Minnesota's prevailing wage law (Minnesota Statutes 177.41 through 177.44) requires employees working on state-funded construction projects covered by law be paid wage-rates comparable to wages paid for similar work in the area where the project is located.
What does Representative Drazkowski think about prevailing wage law, which helps constructions workers--even those without union contracts--earn decent wages? In 2012 he noted:
And [reform] also means reforming the prevailing wage laws that significantly impact the cost of construction in rural Minnesota.
That translates to paying construction workers less. So much for those tears for those workers. Why do we think that Draz thinks about those construction workers' take home pay only when he needs to brew envy, resentment, and invidious comparisons about raises? Because he thinks their wages in Greater Minnesota only make projects more expensive.
What Draz really seems to want is a race to the bottom for working people. The man voted against raising the state's minimum wage in 2014. Since that successful fight, the floor for ages has been raised. Via the Pioneer Press, the AP reported last August in Minnesota announces 2018 minimum wage:
Minnesota’s minimum wage for most large employers will increase to $9.65 an hour in 2018.
The state announced next year’s minimum wage on Thursday based upon inflation. It’s the first annual increase stemming from a 2014 minimum wage hike that gradually increased the state’s floor wage to $9.50 hourly by 2016. Other smaller employers will pay at least $7.87 hourly, up from $7.75
The modest raise taking effect Jan. 1 is the first inflation-adjusted increase. But Republicans have suggested they’d like to do away with those annual hikes, calling it “government on autopilot.”
The state's minimum wage in 2014? The Pioneer Press reported in Minnesota minimum wage hike takes effect:
Roughly 5 percent of Minnesota’s hourly workers — about 83,000 people — earned minimum wage between August 2012 and July 2013. But they weren’t getting $6.15; most of them received the federal minimum of $7.25.
Seems like the guy just wants to nickle and dime working folk.
And there's this: the public employees'raises won't cause taxes to be hiked. According to the Voice of Alexandria:
The raises will cost 287-million dollars, but that will not call for a boost in taxes because the funds will come from existing budgets.
If Draz's fight against prevailing wages for construction workers isn't bad enough, there's also his attempts to undermine unions in general, as Susan Du reports at the City Pages in Rep. Steve Drazkowski's shot at sabotaging unions' political strength.
Photo: The Draz.
If you appreciate our posts and original analysis, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post. Those wishing to make a small ongoing monthly contribution should click on the paypal subscription button.
Or you can contribute via this link to paypal; use email sally.jo.sorensen@gmail.com as recipient.
Comments