BREAKING: City Hall
Tonight the Emeryville City Council voted 3-2 to roll back the City's landmark minimum wage ordinance as had been proposed earlier in the month in response to a blitzkrieg from restaurant owners in town. In a drive led by Council members Dianne Martinez and John Bauters and joined by Scott Donahue, the Council voted to stop the July 1st scheduled wage increase for Emeryville's lowest paid workers. After negotiation with Councilman Donahue who held out for a small increase in wages, the ordinance is proposed to be changed to increase wages at a much slower rate than what is written in the existing law. Council members Bauters and Martinez had wanted no increase at all and only agreed to the small change after Mr Donahue voted NO with the Mayor and Vice Mayor.
Mr Bauters expressed his concern that restaurants would go out of business en masse in Emeryville if the lowest paid workers get the full increase as it exists after hearing from the business owners. In response to arguments from labor advocates, he reminded the crowd that Emeryville has done enough to help low paid workers and the July 1st increase of $1.30 is unwarranted.
Mayor Ally Medina stated the Minimum Wage Ordinance as it is reflects the values of Emeryville and that she had been elected specifically to support the ordinance as voiced by many voters when she was elected to the Council in 2016. She and Vice Mayor Christian Patz voted NO to the roll back proposal.
The vote was the so called 'First Reading' of the ordinance change and the Council will vote again at their next meeting in the required second reading before the law is changed.
Last the Emeryville City Council voted 3-2 to roll back the City's landmark minimum wage ordinance.
ReplyDeleteParticularly disappointed in Scott Donahue and Dianne Martinez for voting for the rollback. I hosted a party for their campaign at my place.
John Bauter was the third vote in that majority; he was the Residents United for a Liveable Emeryville candidate in the last election and I chose not to support him.
I'm with my fellow low-wage food service workers 100%.
SO MUCH WORK went into creating and building RULE. For this? :-(
Liveable wages for Emeryville workers...where is the integrity in our representatives?
ReplyDeleteThe integrity in our elected representatives with regards to the idea of a livable wage in Emeryville resides in Ally Medina and Christian Patz.
Delete