Work & Money
USDA relaxes conservation program rules to boost crop production
Agricultural landowners who are not renewing their agreements this year with the federal government to keep their land out of production have the ability to put that land back to work earlier, a potential boost to wheat and other crop production amid global shortages, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Thursday. Those who have land […]
Planned Parenthood workers in five states announce intent to unionize
Frontline health care workers at Planned Parenthood North Central States announced their intent to unionize on Thursday, saying they want higher wages, more staff and a greater voice in how the organization is run. “I spend my days listening to my patients and caring for them. I need to know my employer will do the […]
Senate Democrats call on Vikings owners to address wage theft claims
Twenty-five Senate Democrats are calling on the Wilf family, owners of the Minnesota Vikings, to take “strong and swift action” in response to allegations of wage theft at their 200-acre development in Eagan. As first reported by the Reformer, more than two dozen workers say they’re still owed more than $100,000 in wages from two […]
Commerce Fraud Bureau to get new powers to investigate wage theft, other financial crimes
Labor leaders are calling a bill that passed the state House and Senate on Sunday the most significant piece of legislation for combating wage theft since it was made a felony in 2019. The bill (HF 3255), which is awaiting Gov. Tim Walz’s signature, gives the Commerce Fraud Bureau new powers to criminally investigate financial […]
Mental health workers strike at three Twin Cities hospitals, citing unsafe working conditions
Hundreds of mental health workers at three Twin Cities hospitals walked off the job on Tuesday to push for safer workplaces, higher wages and more staff. The one-day strike comes just months after more than 400 workers voted to unionize at M Health Fairview and two Allina hospitals, Abbott Northwestern and Mercy Hospital-Unity Campus. Workers […]
Iowa fast-food worker’s wage lawsuit survives in U.S. Supreme Court
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday handed a small, but potentially significant victory to a fast-food worker from Iowa. The court did not address the basic premise of Robyn Morgan’s lawsuit – that the Taco Bell restaurant she worked for had violated wage-and-hour laws. The court did, however, address a procedural issue that could have […]
Senate Republicans push for limiting wage theft penalties
Tucked into the Senate’s massive end-of-session jobs bill (SF 4019) is a provision that would limit penalties against employers for wage theft. The proposal is unlikely to pass a Democratic-controlled House, which is resistant to altering the state’s wage theft law. When it passed in 2019, the law it was heralded as one of the […]
More than 400 mental health workers announce one-day strike at Allina and M Heath Fairview
Just months after voting to unionize, more than 400 mental health workers at three Twin Cities hospitals say they’re prepared to strike for 24 hours on May 24 if they don’t reach a deal on their first labor agreements. At a news conference announcing the strike on Monday, workers from Allina and M Health Fairview […]
Lawmakers, Walz have a deal on taxes, spending
Gov. Tim Walz and legislative leaders have agreed to the broad outlines of a deal that would divide up the state surplus evenly between tax cuts, spending increases and money put into reserve, according to two sources with knowledge of the negotiations. Leaders of the DFL-majority House and GOP-controlled Senate and DFL governor have agreed […]
Labor advocates call on Twin Cities developers to agree to independent monitoring
Workers and labor advocates are calling on the largest residential developers in the Twin Cities to take greater responsibility for preventing wage theft and other labor violations on their construction projects by signing onto a new independent monitoring program. Under the program, called “Building Dignity and Respect,” developers would sign legally-binding contracts to uphold basic […]
Biden pledges more support for farmers, ‘the backbone of freedom’
At an Illinois farm on Wednesday, President Joe Biden announced federal assistance to alleviate costs for farmers and consumers and ensure there is enough food to meet world demand as Russia’s war in Ukraine continues. Biden said he will double the recently announced federal funding to boost domestic fertilizer production. He also pledged to extend […]
U.S. House panel weighs labor law amendment to protect workers from wage theft
WASHINGTON — U.S. House lawmakers questioned several labor experts Wednesday before a House Education and Labor panel about how a new bill to amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 would protect workers from wage theft. House Appropriations Chair Rosa DeLauro introduced the bill, H.R. 3712, known as the “Wage Theft Prevention and Wage […]