Supervisor Alexander Issues Statement on “Living Wage” Ordinance
Milwaukee County’s Committee on Finance, Personnel and Audit has pushed through ordinance changes that will set a minimum ‘living wage’ of $11.33 per hour for the employees of county contractors.
Milwaukee County’s Committee on Finance, Personnel and Audit has pushed through ordinance changes that will set a minimum ‘living wage’ of $11.33 per hour for the employees of county contractors. Supervisor Deanna Alexander has issued the following statement:
“This ordinance will do more harm than good for the people of Milwaukee County. The title might make some people feel warm and fuzzy, but too many issues that a judicious person should care about are falling on deaf ears. The ordinance calls for favoring some employees while totally ignoring others and sets an arbitrary number as a false victory for those on the lowest rungs of the pay scale.
“The committee approved amendments to the ordinance proposal despite the Comptroller’s testimony that he had no prior notice of the amendments and could not issue an immediate forecast.
When community activists spoke in support of the ordinance, the audience hung on every word of their testimony. However, when the county’s Director of Administrative Services testified that the new law was unclear about how current contracts would be affected, Supervisors urged a cut-short period for discussion and moved toward a vote.
“This ordinance will most certainly cause further inflation, resulting in County taxpayers receiving fewer services at a higher cost. I urge my colleagues to seriously consider the motives behind the ordinance and the real meaning of fairness before committing to their votes.”
The full County Board will consider the measure on Feb. 6th.
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. It has not been verified for its accuracy or completeness.
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