(1/09/15) [msnbc.com] - In a year of major Republican victories, the campaign to raise the minimum wage has been the rare success story for the left. Twenty states will see a minimum wage increase in 2015—more than half because state legislatures passed a law or voters approved a ballot initiative to do so.
Progressive advocates say other, broader reforms need to be in the spotlight as well. And the pressure to focus on middle-class incomes and wages will only grow as the 2016 election draws nearer, and candidates work to court the broader electorate.
“Raising the minimum wage is great, but it’s not going to solve the problem of massive inequality in this country,” said Jennifer Epps-Addison, a Wisconsin labor organizer, speaking at an AFL-CIO event on Wednesday. “We need a living wage for everyone.”
The AFL-CIO has its own plans for moving forward. At Wednesday’s event, the labor union announced a new campaign in four states holding early presidential contests—Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada—intended to hold 2016 candidates accountable for their position on income inequality and proposals that would help raise ordinary workers’ wages.
“Raising wages is the single standard by which leadership will be judged,” AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka said in a speech at the summit. Full Story
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