Well, the bad news is the Minneapolis City Council won’t be implementing a $15/hr minimum wage. But hey, they are establishing a … working group! And calling for the recommendation of… a study!  In the Southwest Journal, Sarah McKenzie reports, “The Minneapolis City Council unanimously passed a resolution Friday morning that moves the ball forward on efforts to improve the lives of low-wage Minneapolis workers who struggle to make ends meet and lack access to sick leave and other benefits. The resolution directs city staff to establish a work group to develop policy proposals supporting earned sick time, fair scheduling, wage theft prevention and a living wage. It also calls for city staff to recommend a study for examining the impact of establishing a minimum wage regionally and locally.”

Tell us again about those great jobs mining brings to the Range. The Star Tribune’s Dee DePass talks to workers in northern Minnesota who are worried about layoffs as the global steel price slump continues. “[Katie] DeBlack will lose her job driving a 240-ton mining truck for Minntac on June 1, along with 700 other workers there. [Her partner Jenny] Zylka, a waitress, will also suffer because her employer counts on business from those who work at the taconite plants. … ‘I was definitely caught by surprise,’ said DeBlack, who with Zylka bought a home in Chisholm two years ago in which to raise their children. ‘Now there is just so much uncertainty. Nobody knows about [unemployment] or benefits. … Reality is sinking in.’”

Ahh, Uptown. Skinny jeans, bar patios, and… wrasslin’. Ben Johnson in City Pages reports: “Prime Time Wrestling will be setting up in the empty lot next to Calhoun Square on the fourth Saturday of every month starting in May. The best part: It’s free, all you gotta do is bring a chair. And there might even be beer for sale … .”

Some fashion news for our always-fashionable Glean readers. MPR’s Nancy Yang takes a look at Target’s history of collaborating with designers on special limited editions: “Target pioneered the concept of designer partnerships with Michael Graves and Sonia Kashuk more than 15 years ago and continues to look for ways to put a spin on the model, a spokesperson said. To date, the retailer has collaborated with more than 150 designers in various partnerships. … Some are bona fide hits (see: Missoni). Others miss the bulls-eye (see: Neiman Marcus). But along the way, Target has learned and evolved with its shoppers.”

Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority Chair Michele Kelm-Helgen’s job is being threatened after a pay-equity report had the temerity to suggest she should receive the same salary as Executive Director Ted Mondale, Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal’s Nick Halter reports. This, even after Kelm-Helgen declined the raise.

In other news…

A suspect was charged in Tuesday’s St. Croix River stabbing death of a fisherman. [Star Tribune]

The Glean

Robbinsdale police shot a woman on Thursday night, claiming she was armed with a knife. The woman is in stable condition. [Star Tribune]

So what would happen if MinnesotaCare went away? [Pioneer Press]

Pretty pathetic showing by Professor X in the recent NDSU student senate election: he only got 50 votes. To be fair, Professor X is a cat. [Inforum]

How do you boost economic development and address the rural doctor shortage at the same time? Gaylord, Minnesota is building a medical school. [KARE]

Metro State was targeted by a hacker basically for having the most generic name imaginable. [Star Tribune]

You know that saying “It’s a good problem to have”? This is exactly the opposite: “Farmington schools weigh ban on dead student memorials” [MPR’s NewsCut]

Home Depot employees help build a ramp for their co-worker’s disabled dog. Bawww. [KMSP]

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7 Comments

  1. Bad news?

    If Minneapolis wants to lose jobs to surrounding communities, perhaps. Local minimum wage laws will lead to exactly that.

    If I can pay $12 an hour in Plymouth or $15 an hour in Minneapolis (an extra $6,240 per year) I’m probably going to think long and hard about where to locate my 10 employee startup company.

    1. Losing Jobs

      Sister’s family and friends work in Seattle but can’t afford to live there. The current mayor is on an equity mission going nowhere. What good is a raise if living expenses rise at the same time.

  2. Speaking of Dayton appointees . . .

    How about an investigation into all of his appointments, including judicial appointments? From my perspective he has a habit of appointing political allies to high-paying positions, particularly those approaching retirement from state employment who can benefit immensely from 5 years of higher pay. (The 5 highest salary years form the basis of a state employee’s retirement payout.) I expect that pace to accelerate in the next few years, as Dayton’s term comes to an end, just as it did at the end of the final term of his mentor, Rudy Perpich.

    Keep an eye out for his appointment to replace Justice Wright on the Minnesota Supreme Court, if and when she’s confirmed for the District of Minnesota Federal Court. I’m betting on someone who hasn’t practiced law in nearly a decade.

    1. investigation

      I’m all for that. He clearly does not based his appointments on knowledge and experience as in the case in the county I live in. The judge was a former county attorney who has had several of her cases overturned due to her mistakes and also has had recent decisions as a judge overturned by higher courts due to her lack of knowledge.

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