Politicians Get to Vote on Their Own Raises…
Cleveland Free Times by Harriet Tramer Recently retired Cleveland public school teacher Michael Charney has a new lesson for young people: activism works. Charney wants to recruit young adults to circulating petitions to place a constitutional amendment raising the Ohio minimum wage to $6.85 on the November 2006 ballot. That’s $1.70 higher than the federal […]
State Denies Records Request for Welfare – Recipient Study
Columbus Dispatch Researchers trying to study whether employer cuts in health insurance and other job benefits have caused more lowwage workers to seek public assistance are getting no help from the state. The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services has denied a public-records request by Policy Matters Ohio for the names and addresses of […]
ODJFS Must Share Job Subsidy Data
The Dayton Daily News Ohio’s Department of Jobs and Family Services (ODJFS) has been making every excuse imaginable to justify its refusal to identify employers that have large numbers of workers on the public-assistance rolls. The reasons should lead the public to wonder whether the department is purposefully hiding information or has just adopted the […]
Research Group Sees ‘Danger Sign’ for Public Records in State Agency’s Rejection of Employer Data
Gongwer News Service Researchers seeking data about businesses whose cuts in health insurance may force workers onto public assistance said Friday a state agency was taking “an extraordinarily broad view” of a court decision in withholding the information. Policy Matters Ohio said the Department of Job and Family Services cited a recent Ohio Supreme Court […]
Amy Hanauer Speaks on Renewable Energy
WCPN After living with widely fluctuating and generally skyrocketing energy prices for months, Americans are showing more interest these days in alternatives to fossil fuels. But for some, the desire to increase the country’s use of renewable energy like solar or wind power is nothing new. As part of Making Change; Building the Region’s Future, […]
The Jobless Plead for a Fix
St. Petersburg Times CLEVELAND – Imagine what would happen to Florida if many of its tourists and snowbirds discovered they could go somewhere else and enjoy the same weather, beaches and theme parks for a lot less money. Full Article
Advocates Push for Living Wage
by: Nora Sharp Speakers make the case for an Oberlin living wage Community members almost outnumbered students Wednesday night at what started out as an informative panel on the Oberlin Living Wage proposal, but ended up dissolving into bickering as opposing factions of the audience traded barbs about each other’s conduct in the fight against […]
Officials Try Education to Curb Foreclosures
Columbus Dispatch by Jill Riepenhoff As state lawmakers chew on ways to stem Ohio’s foreclosure problems, community and government leaders are reaching out to Franklin County homeowners on the verge of losing their houses. The Franklin County treasurer’s office has compiled a list of organizations able to help financially troubled home buyers and is training […]
Labor Unions Rally for Anti-Outsourcing Bill
WKSU More than one hundred members of labor unions rallied atthe Ohio Statehouse this afternoon (MONDAY) in support of abill that’s been introduced in the Ohio legislature. Democraticstate senator Teresa Fedor is the bill’s sponsor. She says itwould limit the eligibility of companies that outsource jobs toother countries to get state contracts. Fedor says thesecompanies […]
Ohio Poverty Rate Rises 1.8 Percent
Athens Post Online by Chris Yonker Ohio’s poverty rate has increased despite positive gains in other aspects of the economy, according to a recently released report. According to State of Working Ohio 2005, a report released by the non-profit state organization Policy Matters Ohio, Ohio’s poverty rate is up to 11.6 percent, an increase of […]
Study: Ohioans Miss Benefits of Work
Dayton Business Journal Ohioans are working harder for less financial gain, says a study by Policy Matters Ohio, a liberal think tank based in Cleveland. Ohio’s median household income sank to $42,955 in 2004, from a peak of nearly $46,000 in 2000, according to Policy Matters. Ohio’s median income measured $40,007 in 1984. Policy Matters […]
Ohio’s Declining Wages
WTVG – Toledo CLEVELAND (AP) – A Cleveland think tank says the average Ohio worker has seen declining wages for four years. In a report released today, Policy Matters Ohio says productivity, education and weekly working hours have increased during that time. The report’s author say gains in worker productivity normally are mirrored by gains […]