waggy
No Lifer
chicago tribune
Help wanted? Not in Chicago
Published July 18, 2006
Last week, Chicago offered United Airlines $5.25 million in tax incentives to set up its world headquarters downtown. Some 350 corporate jobs will move from the northwest suburbs to the city. Chicago wants those jobs.
Next week, the Chicago City Council is going to tell Wal-Mart and other very large retailers: Pay your workers at least $13 an hour in wages and benefits, or go away. We don't want your jobs.
Now, we're just going to guess that most Chicagoans who are unemployed wouldn't qualify to be, say, a senior vice president for a major airline. Not many people are.
We'd guess, though, that many of the unemployed would be willing to start on the ground floor of a large retail store.
So what in the heck is Chicago doing?
Chicago may want the prestige of having an airline's world headquarters in the Loop. We won't argue with that. (We might argue with the price tag. With help from the state, the total package approaches $7 million.)
But why, in light of the United deal, would the city chase away jobs that unemployed Chicagoans could get?
The proposed ordinance to require that large retailers pay what the Chicago City Council deems a "living wage" is one of the loopiest ideas we've seen from City Hall in a long time. At least give Mayor Richard Daley some credit for saying it's a bad idea. But he doesn't appear likely to dissuade a majority of the City Council from voting for it.
The ordinance would apply to stores of at least 90,000 square feet whose gross sales across the region total $1 billion. About 40 retailers, including Wal-Mart, Target, Sears and Home Depot, would be affected.
If it passes, those companies can either agree to pay what the City Council demands--or take their jobs and their stores and their sales tax revenue to the suburbs. Target has told aldermen that it will hold off on plans for three proposed stores in African-American neighborhoods if the so-called big-box ordinance passes.
Ald. Joe Moore (49th), a sponsor of the ordinance, called that an "idle threat."
He has some allies on this. It looks like the City Council will pass this ordinance, which would initially set wages and benefits at $10.75 an hour, rising quickly to $13. Of course, that only applies to jobs that actually exist in the city of Chicago.
hmm well $13 an hour would be good. but to force a company to pay twice the fed min wage is silly. many places are not going to do it.
Help wanted? Not in Chicago
Published July 18, 2006
Last week, Chicago offered United Airlines $5.25 million in tax incentives to set up its world headquarters downtown. Some 350 corporate jobs will move from the northwest suburbs to the city. Chicago wants those jobs.
Next week, the Chicago City Council is going to tell Wal-Mart and other very large retailers: Pay your workers at least $13 an hour in wages and benefits, or go away. We don't want your jobs.
Now, we're just going to guess that most Chicagoans who are unemployed wouldn't qualify to be, say, a senior vice president for a major airline. Not many people are.
We'd guess, though, that many of the unemployed would be willing to start on the ground floor of a large retail store.
So what in the heck is Chicago doing?
Chicago may want the prestige of having an airline's world headquarters in the Loop. We won't argue with that. (We might argue with the price tag. With help from the state, the total package approaches $7 million.)
But why, in light of the United deal, would the city chase away jobs that unemployed Chicagoans could get?
The proposed ordinance to require that large retailers pay what the Chicago City Council deems a "living wage" is one of the loopiest ideas we've seen from City Hall in a long time. At least give Mayor Richard Daley some credit for saying it's a bad idea. But he doesn't appear likely to dissuade a majority of the City Council from voting for it.
The ordinance would apply to stores of at least 90,000 square feet whose gross sales across the region total $1 billion. About 40 retailers, including Wal-Mart, Target, Sears and Home Depot, would be affected.
If it passes, those companies can either agree to pay what the City Council demands--or take their jobs and their stores and their sales tax revenue to the suburbs. Target has told aldermen that it will hold off on plans for three proposed stores in African-American neighborhoods if the so-called big-box ordinance passes.
Ald. Joe Moore (49th), a sponsor of the ordinance, called that an "idle threat."
He has some allies on this. It looks like the City Council will pass this ordinance, which would initially set wages and benefits at $10.75 an hour, rising quickly to $13. Of course, that only applies to jobs that actually exist in the city of Chicago.
hmm well $13 an hour would be good. but to force a company to pay twice the fed min wage is silly. many places are not going to do it.
