LAS VEGAS - Thousands of low-wage Nevada workers are expected to go on strike today, then rally on the Las Vegas Strip for a raise in the minimum wage. It's one of hundreds of protests happening around the country as part of the Fight for $15 movement. In Nevada, the minimum wage is $8.25 an hour, a dollar above the federal minimum, which works out to $330 a week or a little more than $17,000 a year.

Shimmy Leany, who works in the kitchen at a Burger King, said it's impossible to get ahead on those kind of wages.

"It's really hard to pay the bills, especially just saving up for maybe retirement or anything else," he said. "It makes things just really difficult in general."

California, Pennsylvania and New York recently passed a gradual hike in the minimum wage to $15 an hour, so Leany said he's hoping to seize the momentum and make it happen in Nevada.

Laura Martin, associate director of the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada, said poverty wages strangle the economy by preventing a large part of the population from spending money to buy things such as homes or cars.

"In Nevada, close to half of our jobs are retail or service jobs, and those jobs pay minimum wage," she said. "And we're seeing more and more jobs like security guards, adjunct professors, child care, home health care, they're paying minimum wage or less than $9."

The Fight for 15 movement took hold about two years ago in Nevada. Two different bills to raise the minimum wage died in legislative committee last year. State Senator Tick Segerblom promises to reintroduce the idea in the 2017 session.


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United Auto Workers' contract negotiations kick off today with Volkswagen at its Chattanooga plant, covering over 4,000 UAW members.

The union says its goal is to achieve an initial agreement that raises standards in wages, benefits and protections to align with those in other unionized plants.

Yolanda Peoples, a member of the UAW bargaining team, said they conducted a survey to prioritize the most pressing issues for changes or improvement.

"The highest concerns was the health and safety. A lot of employees were concerned about the high rate of injuries that we've had inside the plant that weren't being addressed. Really, pretty much was just swept under the table and it wasn't being acknowledged," she explained.

Peoples noted the UAW bargaining team of 20 elected representatives has prepared a "demand book" with some 800 items to present to Volkswagen as the basis for their negotiations. They'll work toward compromises and comprehensive policies that employees and management can agree on.

Peoples said the cost of healthcare insurance was another high point in the survey, which she describes as unaffordable for many workers.

"A lot of the employees have families, and they've taken out the family health care, and the price that we have to pay is extremely high. This year, the prices have gone up in the insurance plans that we have, and a lot of the employees have concerns about that - not only the high deductible, also the cost of the medications," she continued.

She added the policy changes resulted in some doctors being excluded from coverage, forcing patients to switch healthcare providers.

Earlier this year, Volkswagen workers in Chattanooga made history by unionizing, a first for Southern autoworkers outside the 'Big Three' manufacturers.

September is Workforce Development Month and North Dakota offices managing energy assistance programs hope people in need of a fresh career start will give weatherization work some thought.

Community Action Agencies help low-income individuals sign up for aid to keep their heating and cooling bills lower. These offices also have teams specializing in weatherization, with free repairs and upgrades for eligible households, so their homes are safe and healthy and energy systems run more efficiently.

Willy Soderholm, executive director of the Community Action Partnership-Minot Region, said his crews have veteran leadership but there are still turnover issues with newer staff.

"They're working underneath the trailer-house bellies," Soderholm pointed out. "They're working up in the attics and things like that. And plus, you know, they're working out in the cold."

Despite the challenging work, Soderholm noted those who make it through a full season can realize the stability and rewarding mission aligned with the jobs. He explained there are benefits, competitive pay and training available. His region has a waiting list of more than 40 homes in need of weatherization work and a complete staff could help whittle down the number.

Recent federal policies have boosted weatherization funding, with office leaders noting job availability should not be as unpredictable in the coming years. Beyond charting a new career path, Soderholm emphasized joining one of the teams means you are helping people in your community meet basic needs.

"We're really looking for somebody that has compassion to work with those in need and understand the struggles that are going on out there," Soderholm explained.

Soderholm added his agency's longtime staff is nearing retirement age, which should create pressure and opportunities for others to advance their careers. Similar workforce challenges are reported by other offices around the country.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, such programs have led to nearly 275 jobs created or retained in North Dakota since 2015.

A new report showed Connecticut's post-pandemic job growth lags behind the rest of the nation.

The State of Working Connecticut report found personal income, gross domestic product and job growth are all falling behind the U.S. averages. Though low-wage workers saw significant wage growth to help with their cost of living, post-pandemic inflation has eroded the gains.

Patrick O'Brien, research and policy director at Connecticut Voices for Children and the report's author, said one reason for the state's slow job growth is its overall unaffordability.

"You need to make the state more affordable for families to stay here and grow here and for also some families to move here," O'Brien urged. "You could think about, you know, addressing affordable housing, affordable child care, a child tax credit. Those types of things that make it more affordable for families to live in the state."

Slower economic growth can also be attributed to the lagging recovery of public-sector jobs, which plummeted around the start of the pandemic. But nationwide, such jobs returned to pre-pandemic levels around mid-2022. Connecticut is close to the national average but has not reached pre-pandemic levels. The report showed building up the public-sector workforce could also significantly reduce wage inequality.

The report recommended ending the subminimum wage, limiting noncompete agreements and improving early childhood education to bolster Connecticut's economy. Bringing the changes to fruition will not be easy. O'Brien noted budget controls could prevent such policies from being enacted.

"With the fiscal controls and our tight budget, it's hard to get funding to increase individual programs," O'Brien pointed out. "Because there's a spending cap, that money tends to have to come from somewhere else."

He added the state has tried to reduce government spending by not filling public-sector jobs. But it can negatively affect the state budget, because it slows personal income growth and income tax collection. O'Brien thinks if nothing is done, Connecticut will remain on the same trajectory of repressed economic growth.