State of Pennsylvania secondary Archives: on Jobs
Bob Casey:
Raise federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $12 by 2020
Q: Raise federal minimum wage?Lou Barletta (R): Unknown
.
Bob Casey (D): Yes. Increase from current $7.25 to $12 by 2020 & index it to median wages.
Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide on Pennsylvania Senate race
Oct 9, 2018
Dwight Evans:
Encourage minority start-ups in struggling neighborhoods
Encourage neighborhood start-ups and entrepreneurs (particularly minority). We need a national small business start-up program targeting potential entrepreneurs in struggling neighborhoods.
The program would provide business skills training, assistance with business plan development, and a microloan program that would provide loans of $50,000 or less.
Similar to a program recently developed in Jacksonville, FL, this program would have an early detection system to flag those loans in danger of default and provide technical assistance to get the recipient back on track.
The program would also have an outreach component to ensure people know about and take advantage of it.
Source: 2016 Pennsylvania House campaign website DwightEvans.com
Nov 8, 2016
Dwight Evans:
Establish a living wage
The real value of the minimum wage has fallen dramatically over the past several decades. Recent legislation has resulted in increases scheduled through 2015,but even with the increased minimum wage, people working full time can still struggle to
make ends meet--especially in cities that have high housing, food, and heating costs. A living wage determines the minimum income necessary for a worker to meet basic needs such as housing, clothing, food, transportation, and childcare.
Source: 2016 Pennsylvania House campaign website DwightEvans.com
Nov 8, 2016
Ed Rendell:
Pass Work Sharing legislation: part-time unemployment
I would bet that almost everyone in this room knows someone collecting unemployment right now. You might also know someone who is out of work but cannot collect unemployment compensation because of our outdated laws that often don't count every hour you
worked. The good news is that the federal government will give us hundreds of millions in additional funds if we end our antiquated approach.We applaud the employers who made the moral decision to keep their businesses going with fewer hours just so
their workers can count on some income. If we act swiftly to pass Work Sharing legislation, workers in these companies could get unemployment for the lost hours that helped preserve jobs.
I realize that down the road there may be some long-term cost
to employees and employers alike by crafting a modern system. But it's the right thing to do: if you work and pay in, and then lose your job through no fault of your own you should be able to collect. It should be as simple as that.
Source: Pennsylvania 2010 State of the State Address
Feb 9, 2010
Ken Krawchuk:
Oppose affirmative action
Q: Do you support or oppose the statement, "Legally require hiring more women/minorities"?
A: Oppose.Government should not insert itself into private matters.
Source: OnTheIssues interview: 2018 Pennsylvania Governor candidate
May 18, 2018
Joe Biden:
We need "moral capitalism" and corporate responsibility
Biden pointed out that the gap between the wealth of the top one percent and the rest of America is bigger than any time since before 1920. "There's no excuse for this," Biden said. "What happened to a moral responsibility, a moral capitalism?"
Biden talked about workers signing contracts with companies that required workers to not discuss their pay. "What possible reason for that can be other than suppressing wages? Give me an explanation," Biden said.
Source: The Daily Pennsylvanian on 2020 Democratic primary hopefuls
Feb 19, 2019
Joe Sestak:
Increase minimum wage to $10.80 now & $15 later
Sestak said he would support an increase in the minimum wage to $10.80, with inflationary raises to eventually bring the floor to $15 an hour.[Sestak's opponents] McGinty and Fetterman both back a $15-an-hour minimum.
McGinty said numerous groups pushing for the $15 minimum wage have endorsed her (most prominently a bevy of labor unions).
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer on 2016 Pennsylvania Senate debate
Apr 6, 2016
John Fetterman:
Support raising the minimum wage to at least $15 an hour
It's not a secret--the majority of Pennsylvanians are working longer hours for lower wages. That's not the hallmark of a true democracy, or what we should aspire to. Everybody is better off when everybody is better off. I will support raising the minimum
wage to at least $15 an hour. What does it say about our country that we have people working full time that are unable to take care of themselves or their family? We as a society have an obligation to give people a wage they can actually live on.
Source: 2016 Pennsylvania Senate campaign website JohnFetterman.com
Apr 1, 2016
John Fetterman:
Backs $15-an-hour minimum wage
Sestak said he would support an increase in the minimum wage to $10.80, with inflationary raises to eventually bring the floor to $15 an hour. McGinty and Fetterman both back a $15-an-hour minimum.Fetterman noted that McGinty pushed for just a
$9 minimum while running for governor in 2014. "The cynic in me would suggest that [$15] probably polls better in 2016 than it did in 2014," he said. McGinty said numerous groups pushing for the $15 minimum wage have endorsed her.
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer on 2016 Pennsylvania Senate debate
Apr 6, 2016
John Fetterman:
Raise minimum wage to $15 per hour
Tom Wolf raised the minimum wage--mostly for state janitorial workers and part-time clerical staff--increasing their pay from $7.25 to $10.15 per hour. And in the wake of North Carolina's passing a law that stripped rights from gay
and transgender people, Wolf issued a pair of executive orders that expanded protections against discrimination based on one's sexual orientation or gender identity.
He wanted "to show the world that Pennsylvania is a welcoming place for everyone."Fetterman stands for many of the same policies. He wants to raise the minimum wage to $15 and pass gun reforms, and supports Medicare-for-all.
And with all of it comes more of a voice for the "forgotten cities across Pennsylvania" message. He says he stands for "evidence-based public policies that benefit the most people possible."
Source: Vox.com on 2018 Pennsylvania gubernatorial race
May 16, 2018
John Fetterman:
Joined newspaper employees on the picket line
A group of Pittsburgh Post Gazette employees picketed on the North Shore. The staffers and Post-Gazette management do not agree on salary, benefits and other issues. Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman joined them on the picket lines. "I've said it time
and time again, I don't understand how you could mistreat such an extraordinary group of people and such an extraordinary operation that is a true asset to all of Pennsylvania," Fetterman said. "I will never understand that."
Source: KDKA-TV Pittsburgh CBS News on 2022 Pennsylvania Senate race
Nov 7, 2020
Josh Shapiro:
Will veto any bill to make PA a right-to-work state
As Governor, Josh will protect the right to collective bargaining, go after employers who spread anti-union propaganda and interfere with workers' right to join a union,
strengthen worker misclassification laws, and veto any legislation that seeks to make Pennsylvania a right-to-work state.
Source: 2022 Pennsylvania Governor campaign website JoshShapiro.org
May 18, 2022
Katie McGinty:
Endorsed by United Steelworkers
The United Steelworkers (USW) today announced their support of Katie McGinty in her bid to win a seat in the US Senate by replacing Republican incumbent Pat Toomey. "Though the USW doesn't usually endorse candidates in primaries, we are making a rare
exception for Katie McGinty, who we feel will make a terrific US Senator," said the USW District 10 (PA) Director. "Pat Toomey is out of touch with the hard working citizens of this Commonwealth, and we see McGinty as a fresh voice for workers capable of
cutting through the D.C. gridlock." The local USW promises a full-scale campaign operation in support of McGinty, one that will highlight both Toomey's extremist views and McGinty's common sense approach to issues most important to working families in
Pennsylvania.Said the USW International President, "She has been a tireless advocate for workers' rights and protections. Pennsylvania needs an honest, hard-working senator with high ethics and principled positions to represent us in Washington."
Source: USW.org press release on 2016 Pennsylvania Senate race
Aug 5, 2015
Katie McGinty:
Backs $15-an-hour minimum wage
McGinty and [Braddock Mayor John] Fetterman both back a $15-an-hour minimum.Fetterman noted that McGinty pushed for just a $9 minimum while running for governor in 2014. "The cynic in me would suggest that
[$15] probably polls better in 2016 than it did in 2014," he said.
McGinty said numerous groups pushing for the $15 minimum wage have endorsed her (most prominently a bevy of labor unions).
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer on 2016 Pennsylvania Senate debate
Apr 6, 2016
Malcolm Kenyatta:
Champion of equal-pay; $15 Now movement
As a champion of equal-pay and the $15 Now movement, Malcolm believes that no matter what race or gender you are, everyone deserves the right to earn a fair family-sustaining wage.
Poverty must be recognized for the public health crisis that it is. It truly is the moral issue of our time.
Source: 2021 Pennsylvania Senate campaign website MalcolmForPA.com
Mar 4, 2021
Malcolm Kenyatta:
We need to value service industry employees
About service industry employees: "We've never, never valued those jobs and those people in the way that we should and certainly not in line with the value that they provide to our economy and to our cities,"
Kenyatta told me. "We're seeing it a little bit more as we've been shut down, we've depended on the folks who show up at the grocery store and who care for people."
Source: The Philadelphia Inquirer on 2022 Pennsylvania Senate race
May 25, 2020
Rick Saccone:
Stop government employee unions from using dues on politics
Right now, state and local governments are acting as campaign bundlers, collecting dollars from public employees that are being used for political purposes. This practice is fundamentally wrong. That's why I have joined 50 of my colleagues in sponsoring
House Bill 1507. This measure would prohibit the deduction of any dues by public entities from their employees that would be used in whole or part for political activity.You may have seen advertisements denying that any share of public employee union
dues are used for political purposes. With all due respect, such claims are untrue. I point to the largest public sector union of them all, the Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA). It spent more than $3.7 million of its members' dues on
politics and gave $2 million directly to candidates during the last election. You don't have to take my word for it; the PSEA says so itself (because the IRS requires it to).
Government unions should collect their own dues. HB507 would ensure that.
Source: Press release on Pennsylvania voting records: HB1507
Jun 6, 2014
Scott Wagner:
Supports "right-to-work"; allow opt-out from unionization
Q: Enact right-to-work law, eliminating the right of unions to mandate dues for workers they represent?Scott Wagner (R): Yes. Praised Supreme Court decision allowing government employees who opt out of a union
to not be charged for the cost of collective bargaining.
Tom Wolf (D): No. "I'm not sure what gives the minority the right to say `we'll take advantage of the benefits of the unions, but we're not going to pay for the cost'."
Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide: Pennsylvania Governor race
Oct 9, 2018
Scott Wagner:
Raise minimum wage from $7.25 to $9.50/hr, but not higher
Q: Raise the state minimum wage from $7.25?Scott Wagner (R): Yes. Supports raising to between $8.75 & $9.50/hr, but not higher.
Tom Wolf (D): Yes. Increase to $12/hr.
Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide: Pennsylvania Governor race
Oct 9, 2018
Sharif Street:
Strengthen workers ability to collectively bargain
Sharif is a passionate supporter of the right of workers to organize and form unions. He will fight back any attempt to weaken unions and supports
legislation that strengthens a workers ability to collectively bargain.
Source: 2022 Pennsylvania Senate campaign website StreetForPA.com
Jun 27, 2022
Sharif Street:
Increase minimum wage to $12, increase to $15/hour by 2025
Pennsylvania has not seen a raise in the minimum wage since 2019. It currently sits at the Federal minimum of $7.25 an hour, lower than every state that surrounds us. Sharif supports legislation that would immediately raise the minimum wage to
$12, followed by a gradual 50 cent increases until the rate reached $15 an hour in 2025. The rate would then automatically increase to keep up with inflation.
Source: 2022 Pennsylvania Senate campaign website StreetForPA.com
Jun 27, 2022
Tom Corbett:
Keystone Works: on-the-job training for displaced workers
Last summer, working together, Republicans and Democrats passed legislation creating the Keystone Works Program. This program is built around a worker's ambition, not bureaucratic rules. Keystone Works provides on-the-job
training to allow displaced workers to train for open positions. Here's the great innovation: those trainees don't have to give-up their unemployment benefits while learning a new skill on the job.
Source: 2013 State of the State speech to Pennsylvania Legislature
Feb 5, 2013
Tom Wolf:
Increase minimum wage to $10.10 and index it to inflation
- McCord: Supports increasing Pennsylvania's minimum wage to $10.70 per hour and provide annual increases of 10 cents per year through 2024 before indexing it to inflation.
- McGinty & Schwarz: Support increasing Pennsylvania's minimum wage to
$10.10 per hour by 2016, including tipped workers like waiters and waitresses, and indexing it to inflation.
- Wolf: Supports increasing Pennsylvania's minimum wage to $10.10 over a two-year period and indexing it to inflation.
Source: The Patriot News on 2014 Pennsylvania governor debate
May 10, 2014
Tom Wolf:
Raised minimum wage from $7 to $10 per hour
Tom Wolf raised the minimum wage--mostly for state janitorial workers and part-time clerical staff--increasing their pay from $7.25 to $10.15 per hour. And in the wake of North Carolina's passing a law that stripped rights from gay and transgender
people, Wolf issued a pair of executive orders that expanded protections against discrimination based on one's sexual orientation or gender identity. He wanted "to show the world that Pennsylvania is a welcoming place for everyone."
Fetterman stands for many of the same policies. He wants to raise the minimum wage to $15 and pass gun reforms, and supports Medicare-for-all.
And with all of it comes more of a voice for the "forgotten cities across Pennsylvania" message. He says he stands for "evidence-based public policies that benefit the most people possible."
Source: Vox.com on 2018 Pennsylvania gubernatorial race
May 16, 2018
Tom Wolf:
No "right-to-work"; unionization decided by majority rule
Q: Enact right-to-work law, eliminating the right of unions to mandate dues for workers they represent?Scott Wagner (R): Yes. Praised Supreme Court decision allowing government employees who opt out of a union
to not be charged for the cost of collective bargaining.
Tom Wolf (D): No. "I'm not sure what gives the minority the right to say `we'll take advantage of the benefits of the unions, but we're not going to pay for the cost'."
Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide: Pennsylvania Governor race
Oct 9, 2018
Tom Wolf:
Raise minimum wage from $7.25 to $12/hr
Q: Raise the state minimum wage from $7.25?Scott Wagner (R): Yes. Supports raising to between $8.75 & $9.50/hr, but not higher.
Tom Wolf (D): Yes. Increase to $12/hr.
Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide: Pennsylvania Governor race
Oct 9, 2018
Tom Wolf:
State to be pro-active in connecting employers to workers
We have workers aging out of our workforce, and too often the next generation of worker is not there or doesn't have the skills to replace them. If we can't strengthen our workforce, we will fall behind. That's why we are going to do something a little
different. We are going to put together a Keystone Economic Development and Workforce Command Center. Agency secretaries are going to meet each week to make sure no workforce effort walks alone or falls through some crack in the state government.
If the Department of Community and Economic Development knows a company that needs 20 welders and the Department of Labor and Industry has a welding program, we're going to connect them. If a labor union is having trouble establishing a
training program because of antiquated procedures, then we need to fix it. If a business can't hire a worker because of an out-of-date or unnecessary rule or regulation, we need to know about it so we can take action.
Source: 2019 State of the State address to Pennsylvania legislature
Feb 5, 2019
Tom Wolf:
Minimum wage hasn't been raised in thirteen years
Most states across the nation have a higher minimum wage than Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania's minimum wage is still stuck at $7.25. Pennsylvanians haven't gotten a raise in thirteen years. Adjusted for inflation, they've actually taken a $2 an hour pay
cut. When more Pennsylvanians get paid fairly, reliance on public benefits goes down. It's time to do the right thing. It's time to do the smart thing. It's time to raise our minimum wage.
Source: 2022 State of the State Address to Pennsylvania legislature
Feb 8, 2022
Val Arkoosh:
As county chair, raised local minimum wage to $15 an hour
As a physician for over two decades and now as Chair of Pennsylvania's third-largest county, my number one job is taking care of Pennsylvania families. In Montgomery County, we raised the minimum wage to $15 an hour and provided paid parental leave
to county workers. We spurred job growth, rebuilt critical infrastructure, and preserved over 10,000 acres of farmland, all while restoring the County's AAA bond rating and maintaining some of the lowest county property taxes in our region.
Source: 2021 Pennsylvania Senate campaign website ValArkoosh.com
Jul 25, 2021
Page last updated: Feb 18, 2023