skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Wednesday, September 18, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Medical copays reduce health care access in MS prisons; Israel planted explosives in pagers sold to Hezbollah according to official sources; Serving looks with books: Libraries fight 'fast fashion' by lending clothes; Menhaden decline threatens Virginia's ecosystem, fisheries.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

JD Vance calls for toning down political rhetoric, while calls for his resignation grow because of his own comments. The Secret Service again faces intense criticism, and a right to IVF is again voted down in the US Senate.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

A USDA report shows a widening gap in rural versus urban health, a North Carolina county remains divided over a LGBTQ library display, and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz' policies are spotlighted after his elevation to the Democratic presidential ticket.

Should NY Lawmakers Close Pay Loophole for Utility Companies?

play audio
Play

Monday, June 7, 2010   

ALBANY, N.Y. - With just weeks to go in the New York legislative session, it is now up to the Assembly to decide whether utility companies such as National Grid must pay service workers a prevailing wage. Currently, those companies are exempt from the state's prevailing-wage law, which requires companies contracting with the state to pay employees at least the average going rate. Buffalo Assemblyman Sam Hoyt says some utility companies use contractors for such services as janitorial or security that pay less than eight dollars an hour. He says these regulated utilities can afford to pay workers a living wage, particularly when some of their executives earn millions of dollars a year.

"People say, 'Jeez, you can't do this during a tough economy.' Nonsense. This is when you have to do it. People are struggling to make ends meet; these particular members of the work force are struggling as much as anybody."

President Jerry Dennis of SEIU Local 200, which has 13,000 members in 52 upstate counties, says it is taxpayers who end up bearing the real cost of the exemption, because those service workers don't make enough to support their families. He says closing the loophole would provide an estimated 1100 workers with a living wage.

"That's helping keep folks off of public assistance, and allowing them to do exactly what we all go to work to do: to provide for our families, to be proud of what we do, to make a good honest living and not be reliant on public assistance; these are proud folks."

Utility companies are lobbying against the measure, which they say could result in rate increases for customers. Supporters of the measure say the pay increases amount to pennies on the dollar compared to the hundreds of millions these companies record in profits, and should not impact rates.

The Good Jobs Bill passed the Senate on a vote of 33 to 28 last week. It is currently being considered by the Assembly Labor Committee. (The Bills are S-7096 and A-10257).


get more stories like this via email

more stories
Including the $236 million in federal funding for wildland fire management recently announced for 2025, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law has invested a total of $1 billion to the cause, according to the Department of the Interior. (Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

This month, the federal government announced funding for next year's wildfire management, totaling $236 million and experts hope threatened …


Social Issues

play sound

From gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson to Superintendent of Public Instruction hopeful Michele Morrow, some Republicans running for office have …

Social Issues

play sound

California is home to more than 181,000 people who are unhoused, with 75,000 in Los Angeles alone, so the Los Angeles Food Policy Council will host a …


The California Department of Conservation is holding a public meeting online on Sept. 24, to update the public on its progress in plugging abandoned oil wells. (Alizada Studios/Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

Groups concerned about pollution and climate change are asking Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign a trio of bills dubbed the "make polluters pay" package…

Social Issues

play sound

This week, National Voter Registration Day was another timely reminder for Ohioans preparing for the 2024 general election. The latest reports from …

The American Heart Association said caregivers often experience personal and spiritual growth, discovering their own resilience, competence and capacity for sacrifice as they help a friend or loved one. (Justlight/Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

September is Self-Care Awareness Month and the American Heart Association in Missouri is urging caregivers to take some much-needed time for themselve…

Environment

play sound

In Virginia's waters, the decline of a small but critically important fish is causing growing concern among conservation groups and fishermen alike…

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado voters will decide whether to change the state's constitution to ensure families have school choice as a fundamental right. Kallie Leyba…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021