pdxlivingwage-blog

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The Scottish Living Wage Campaign

https://www.instagram.com/scottishlivingwagecampaign/

Three out of seven of the seven C’s The Scottish Living Wage Campaign demonstrates congruence, commitment and controversy with civility.  Much like Fight for 15, The Scottish Living Wage Campaign pushes for higher wages in order to alleviate the issues of poverty, and also hoping to prevent it as a whole as the nations living wage is low. These efforts are an example of congruence but also commitment, as the organization acts on their beliefs on the subject of the nations living wage and is pushing to encourage individuals to voice and express their concern. The organization also constantly pushes to collaborate with other organizations to promote awareness, and help individuals who struggle with low living wages. The Scottish Living Wage Campaigns efforts also align with controversy with civility because of their acts of leadership, and also collaborative efforts to meet with individuals and other organizations is an act of group development and thinking.

- Danny Phetdara

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OurOregon is organization that fights for Oregon's priorities. A top priority that this organization fights for is raising the minimum wage for Oregonians. Through its efforts on Twitter to spread the word and get out there more, OurOregon raises awareness of what’s really going on in Oregon's government system. This social media campaign really ties into the seven c’s more specifically it ties to collaboration, congruence and common purpose. The idea of using collaboration throughout this campaign is important because it can’t happen by itself. It needs a group of allies and it needs many different resources, from proper government information to the actual twitter platform itself. When it comes to fighting for such a impactful cause collaboration is key because you’re going to need to understand everyone's believes, values and ideas when it comes to busting out a plan for this cause. Secondly, congruence is very important for this social media campaign, and the fight in general. When it comes to congruence, we have to look at outside sources to determine if there is enough information to make a fight for a higher wage justified. Like the congruence group talked about in class, you have to be able to see outside perspectives and views, because when you argument for something like a higher wage, there will be people who disagree and a group like OurOregon has to be able to handle that, see it, and work with it. Lastly, common purpose is a large idea an umbrella over the fight for higher wages, and the idea of this twitter page. Finding a common purpose is what basically let to this social media campaign and forum for people to tweet at, retweet and find information. That common purpose came from this idea of common needs, a need to fight for this idea, a need for a solid place for reliable information and a space to do so. -Bailey Van Stiphout

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Facebook Fight for fifteen homepage

https://www.facebook.com/Fightfor15/

Fight for 15 homepage demonstrates collaboration, common purpose and congruence.

The way it relates to collaboration is the unity people are willing to act together to bring awareness to the community’s need in raise of the minimum wage in states and throughout the whole country to benefit workers below the poverty line to have the opportunity to be able to afford more things for them and their families. The same can be said for common purpose, individuals who are striving to help individuals below the poverty line and are in call for action to increase minimum wage for workplaces in Oregon to $15 can find other individuals across the web who are also interested in similar goals as one but with other action plan in how to promote this social issue as well apart from having a facebook homepage which increases awareness and collaboration to use different methods to succeed. Of course, in order for collaboration and common purpose to succeed, congruence needs to be established within individuals to work with others despite their differences in how to approach awareness in the community. Not only this, the actions these people make in response to bringing awareness of increasing minimum wage to $15 in Oregon is where individuals reflect their interest in this fight and communicate to their audience their willingness to do anything to see action be done.

-Areli Mancilla-Ramos

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Free market influences the minimum wage in which businesses are willing to raise the minimum wage of their employees which will also include a raise in business products to maintain a ‘balance’ between the two. Now, due to increase of minimum wage employers will look for jobs where they will earn more money which will reduce amount of workers in a business and will result a loss of employees. Most importantly, raise of minimum wage is supposed to reduce #poverty but sometimes economy doesn’t permit this due to every business #tryingtokeepupwitheconomy poverty increases and hurts the community and people in poverty even though the purpose of minimum wage is for individuals to live a #standardliving and be able to provide for oneself.  

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Blog #6 Academic Perspectives

Landefeld, J. C., Burmaster, K. B., Rehkopf, D. H., Syme, S. L., Lahiff, M., Adler-Milstein, S., & Fernald, L. C. (2014). The association between a living wage and subjective social status and self-rated health: A quasi-experimental study in the Dominican Republic. Social Science & Medicine, 121, 91-97. doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2014.09.051

Jayakody, R., Danziger, S., & Pollack, H. (2000). Welfare reform, substance use, and mental health. Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law, 25(4), 623-652.

Experts conducting a quasi experiment study in the Dominican Republic wanting to find out more on the effect of poverty associated to health (mental and social health) due to limited studies on this topic. This research study took place in a apparel factory providing minimum wage and is studied in a more ‘natural’ environment, in sense that there are no factors in change of pay to the workers and the type of environment the workers are accustomed to.

    Both articles exam the importance of having a decent living wage in order to pursue a healthy lifestyle. In the article by Danziger, Jayakody and Pollack, it examens the connection between substance abuse and living on welfare. There can be a distinct connection between the poverty rate, and alcohol and drug abuse.  

    The research study concludes with poverty associated with poor health, based on the two type of groups of workers both in apparel factories where the control group consisted of workers paid with minimum wage vs the dependent group where the workers were paid “350% wage increase” (Landefiled, 2014) and the time period is 15-16 months and was conducted by in-person interviews and regular check-ups with workers by one-on-one. Throughout this quasi-experiment the objective of measuring mental and physical health status over a wide range of population and having this study take in people with diverse backgrounds because as this study noted, “ an individual's subjective evaluation of their overall social status, income, education and occupation” (Landefiled, 2014) is an independent role that is considered in determining one’s health status since the luxury an individual is able to afford determines the amount of resources open to them and the amount of education one has received also plays a vital role where you work (job environment).

    The article by Danziger, Jayakody and Pollack, there is a connection to the limits that happen when someone is not able to remove themselves from welfare to a decent paying job or least a liveable living wage and how that affects their life.

    Also, this factor affects the experiment overall as well since workers from same background (economic, political, and cultural) have a huge influence in the group of individuals one is observing and how this difference can vary from one group of people to another and the gap whether small or big separating the groups of people based on these factors can bias or pertain to the experiment and how specific the researcher is looking for when finding the effect of poverty associated with mental health.   

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For this blog post, we reached out to about fifteen different stakeholders and only heard back from one. The first nine were Portland or pacific northwest based and the remaining were east coast larger organizations. Sadly, this stakeholder is not present in the Portland area, but we figured it was better than nothing. We interviewed Philip Mattera of Good Jobs First. According to their website, “ Good Jobs First is a national policy resource center for grassroots groups and public officials, promoting corporate and government accountability in economic development and smart growth for working families. We provide timely, accurate information on best practices in state and local job subsidies, and on the many ties between smart growth and good jobs. Good Jobs First works with a very broad spectrum of organizations, providing research, training, communications and consulting assistance” (goodjobsfirst.org) Good Jobs first is located in Washington DC. Philip requested the interview be done over email correspondence. Attached below are our groups questions for Mr. Mattera and his reply. Interview response was past the actual blog post assignment date.

  1. What are your/your organizations thoughts on the living wage in the U.S currently?

Currently, the living wage in the U.S. is a concept rather than a legal requirement. It is a recognition that every job should provide a decent standard of living--not just the bare minimum.

2. How would you describe your company/ position to someone who has never heard of Good Jobs first?

Good Jobs First seeks to ensure that jobs created as a result of giving tax breaks or other subsidies to corporations result in the creation of jobs paying a living wage.

 3. If you could put into your own words what living wage is, what would that be?

 It is a level of pay and benefits that allows the worker to live with dignity and security.

4. If you could change the living wage standard right now what would it be?

$15 an hour is a start, but higher levels are needed, especially in areas with high housing and other costs.

5. How could local people in their city help fight for a higher wage?

They could join an organization/movement such as Fight for $15.

 6. What is a liveable wage in your opinion?

 As I mentioned, it is a level of pay and benefits that allows the worker to live with dignity and security. The dollar amount may vary from place to place.

 7. What are your thoughts on the fightfor15 campaign?

 It is doing great work.

8. What are your thoughts on the federal minimum wage vs. having a individual state minimum wage?

There needs to be a federal minimum but states should have their own minimum levels above that.

9. Do you think that a minimum wage can be too high?

 No.

10. In your experience, do you think some jobs do not deserve a higher living wage than others?

Some jobs may deserve pay levels higher than others but a living wage should apply to everyone.

   Citations: Home. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.goodjobsfirst.org/

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This song is about social change because it talks about where love exists in this world, in this world there is people dying from wars and chemicals exposure and how children are suffering when they are innocent to the world. More than anything it communicates how people are not united and are not loving toward to one another and are suffering when we came from the same father (God) and how we are pleading God for help looking for our savior from the evilness of the world. The song itself makes you wonder where love is and what love is and how we can bring it up to this world. #whatislove #weneedasavior #theinnnoecentfall

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To ensure our page is well rounded, we found a clip on the opinion of minimum wage being a negative, harmful law in the eyes of Peter Schiff. On the show The Joe Rogan experience this is a clip from the regular four hour episode. Joe is speaking with Peter Schiff. Schiff believes that having a minimum wage destroys the economy and businesses alike.  Schiff is talking about a free market, capitalist approach to economy. Schiff states that the minimum wage was created from racism so employers did not have to hire certain people and they could blame it on certain skill sets they did or did not have.

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According to Chris Lehman from OPB.org, there is a small issue of confusion with the new Oregon minimum wage hike. According to Kate Browns new seven year minimum wage increase the issue of where you work has been most frustrating for small businesses and employees whose jobs carry them across bored with higher pay. These struggles for understanding the wage difference based off of area, causes some employees and businesses to become angry with the increase.

According to the new deal, depending on where you work fifty percent of the time is what your pay will be based off of. This helps bigger businesses located in the smaller payment areas in the Oregon boundaries, but this does not benefit employees who just barely misses the cut for a significant increase in wage. Oregon AFL-CIO Tom Chamberlain says, “Under the new rules, an employee must work more than 50 percent of their time during a pay period in a different region before a different wage is required. A pay period can be an entire month, which means some workers could spend two weeks in a higher wage region without the higher wage being required”. This leaves a lot of Oregon workers angry. According to the article, by 2022 if an Oregon employee works two weeks in area that pays $14.75, but work two weeks and one day in their $12.75 zone, the employee would be paid $12.75 the entire pay period. This is causing some Oregon's to wonder if the minimum wage raise is worth it.

Lehman, C. (2016, June 16). Oregon Issues Rules In Advance Of New Minimum Wage Law. Retrieved from https://www.opb.org/news/article/oregon-rules-minimum-wage-law/

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An argument that was underlined in the article “The Winners and losers in Oregon’s minimum wage hike” increases in wage does not mean well for small business due to increase in the price of food each year such as David Brown’s problem of being a small business owner. With a minimum wage increase David would need to raise his prices by .4 cents a year to keep up. As prices increase, customers become more difficult to handle causing employees to want more of an increase in their pay to feel properly compensated for the situation. More importantly, increasing the minimum wage means more of a tax increase taken out of an employees’ income which ultimately defeats the purpose of a larger wage. In the long term aftermath, an increase of the living wage would affect low-poverty or below poverty level families and the economy around them. Those specific families would not be able to spend money out because product increases, causing the small business economy to collapse. A second controversy dealing with the increasing in the minimum wage is businesses such as Agriculture (farmers) do not have the option to raise prices or control how much they earn apart from getting a different job. Farmers don’t settle the price of their products, it all depends on what the industry the farmers work for are willing to pay. Although supply and demand is effect, the industry still sets the standard for farmers prices.

On the other hand, benefits that were stated in the article include more money according to Emily Hill a student-teacher at PSU and that many employers who are working in rural areas or recognized monuments such as the Portland International airport, will receive a higher raise the only downside to this effect is that the number of years working in that particular employment won’t matter. Instead, everyone will be paid equally which Jeremy Boutwell doesn’t agree with because he has been working as a cashier for 25 years. Boutwell disagrees with an injustice of  a recent high school graduate receiving the same amount of pay each hour compared to his years of experience,  seems unfair to him.  

Marum, A. (n.d.). The winners and losers in Oregon's minimum wage hike. Retrieved from https://www.google.com/amp/s/articles.oregonlive.com/business/index.ssf/2017/07/oregon_minimum_wage_hike.amp

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Blog #2

Identify the Context of the problem: 

The context problem surrounding minimum wage is the simple idea that the minimum wage was created in order to provide employers regardless of whether they are in a union or not a sustainable lifestyle based on the earnings an individual makes. However, this is not the case since many individuals struggle to meet the standard American lifestyle and are forced to work numerous jobs and fall short of necessities because their pay is not enough to maintain an livable lifestyle.

History of the problem

According to lib.umd.edu, the beginning of the concept of Living wage began when American workers came together more specifically Boston ship carpenters in 1675 which lead to funding “of the American Federation of Labor (AFL)” . In 1886, the labor movement promoted the idea of a general “living wage” which would enable all workers, including workers not a part of a union, to support a family, participate in public life, and maintain an “American standard of living” (A Living Wage). What started as $.25 cents an hour after the Great Depression occurred in the 1930’s reestablishing economy from this point and forward, the minimum wage has increased throughout the years to the present moment of $10.75 in the state of Oregon. The minimum wage will continue to increase due to the labor movement Fight for fifteen where all efforts are being brought together to have the minimum wage increase to $15 an hour eventually and hopefully fulfill the concept of being able to live a standard living on one’s own expense.  

Actions that have been attempted and which actions are current and underway?

http://livingwagecampaign.org/about/

The living wage campaign is a national campaign fighting for every state to receive a decent living wage.

http://www.basicrights.org/news/lets-make-sure-all-oregon-workers-make-a-living-wage/

This is an organization called Basic rights Oregon and they are fighting for equal rights of the LGBTQ community. Lori Rodriguez visited Salem, Oregon in person to attempt to talk to senators and state legislation to appeal them to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour. 

**find articles or newspapers targeting audiences impacted by the problem

https://www.oregon.gov/oha/PH/ABOUT/Documents/ship/Mini%20grantees%20-%20strategic%20issues%20docs/livingwage.pdf

This is an amazing document from Oregon government department of health stating the use of Oregon poverty based on the low amount of income and living wages.

https://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2015/11/could_you_live_on_oregons_mini.html

This is an Oregon live article discussing the issue of having the second highest minimum wage at $9.75 (article is from 2015) and the issue of that not being enough to live off of in Portland.

https://www.bizjournals.com/portland/news/2018/12/06/how-oregon-works-4-pathways-to-a-living-wage.html

Here’s another article, it talks about a “successful” method to earn a proper living wage.

https://www.oregonlive.com/business/index.ssf/2018/06/oregons_minimum_wage_jumps_75.html

This article from Oregon live talks about the most recent minimum wage jump from  1970-2018 Oregon Legislation, talking about the protesters on the power of 15 to minimum wage jumps from

Highlight TWO organizations found in the search that address issue locally

http://livingwagecampaign.org/

Although not local, living wages campaign fights for living wages across the country to ensure everyone has a right to a livable wage paycheck.

Fighting for Fifteen, an organization that is a locally funded organization in Portland and is fighting for the minimum wage to be raised to $15 an hour in the near future no matter if legislators are trying to propose and dismiss these petitions. One of their main concerns is for employers to be able to sustain themselves after a financial bankrupt that occurred in the United States in 2008 where many lost almost everything and are slowly trying to recover but due to low wage set in Oregon and the over price housing utilities and rent in Oregon is becoming it is harder for these individuals to be able to live a stable much less financial lifestyle where they can afford luxury such as go out to eat or do something other than work.

Work Cited

A Living Wage. (n.d.). Retrieved from

https://www.lib.umd.edu/unions/labor/living-wage

Bühler, P., Schlaich, P., & Sinner, D. (2018). Living wage. Oregon Department of Health. doi:10.1007/978-3-662-54615-4

(n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.bizjournals.com/portland/news/2018/12/06/how-oregon-works-4-pathways-to-a-living-wage.html

Rogoway, M., & Rogoway, M. (2018, June 29). Oregon's minimum wage jumps Sunday. Retrieved from https://www.oregonlive.com/business/index.ssf/2018/06/oregons_minimum_wage_jumps_75.html

Theen, A. (2015, November 09). Could you live on Oregon's minimum wage or $15 an hour? (interactive). Retrieved from https://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2015/11/could_you_live_on_oregons_mini.html

The Fight for 15 Is Not Over. (n.d.). Retrieved from

https://www.uniteoregon.org/fight_for_15

What is the history of the minimum wage? (n.d.). Retrieved from https://poverty.ucdavis.edu/faq/what-history-minimum-wage

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Introductory statement on Oregon/Portland Living wage.

A living wage is a minimum income necessary for a worker to meet their basic needs. A person’s needs include food, housing, and other essential needs such as clothing. The goal of a living wage is to allow a worker to afford a basic but decent standard of living.

The living wage assigned by local and state governments is by no means a livable wage. If you are required to work a 40 hour work week and barely make ends meet for a single adult, what quality of life is that? The idea of a living wage is to set a single adult, or basic family a decent standard of living. If you are able to provide for yourself entirely with your income, you are a self-sufficient individual with zero assistance. According to Shawna Sykes a workforce analyst (Sykes 2018), “The self-sufficiency wage budget is “bare bones” with just enough income to meet basic needs and no extras... It assumes that you have employer-provided health insurance…” This thought process is detrimental to an individual's well-being. The idea of living is not to simply work grueling hours, go home, go to sleep and repeat. Due to this, the living standard baseline comes from a  very generalized level of information on the costs of living. It is called the cost of living for a reason. 

Although there are many wonders of the world that include things like, travel, peer socializing and hobbies that bring joy to life, these activities require a steady amount of income, more so, the amount given at a bare minimum does not provide enough for an individual to partake in these extra activities to live a well balance life. Sykes goes on to say, “many would argue that earning only enough to barely make ends meet (self-sufficiency) is not the end goal. We don’t just want to survive. We want to thrive.” This idea that a preset digit covers the cost of living forever is astronomically outdated. The baseline for minimum wage required by law is to simply cover food, and housing. According to a living wage calculation for Multnomah County, the standard living wage minimum for one adult in Multnomah County, Oregon is $14.59 an hour at 40 hours a week before taxes. While another source from the Oregon Department of revenue states the “standard is $10.75 an hour” (Oregon Minimum Wage). This further demonstrating the outdated living costs that fall under the standard for minimum wage. Housing alone in the greater Portland area has become so astronomically high, that it makes living off of minimum wage financially deficient. 

 The average cost of living in Portland, Oregon is $1614 (Rent jungle survey). Using the standard Oregon wage at $10.75, an average person would need to work 37.5 hours a week for housing alone. If the living wage is not livable, the issue at hand is the quality of life in Portland will decrease substantially. Small businesses will close because the market will shut down, the economically will not be able to sustain a decrease in spending “splurges”. The employee would still be short on paying rent. This baseline of income does not allow a single adult or single family the financial freedom that helps themselves financially plan for the future.

Works cited  

Jungle, R. (n.d.). Find Apartments in Your Area. Retrieved from https://www.rentjungle.com/average-rent-in-portland-or-rent-trends/

Living Wage Calculation for Multnomah County, Oregon. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://livingwage.mit.edu/counties/41051

Oregon Minimum Wage Rate Summary. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.oregon.gov/boli/WHD/OMW/Pages/Minimum-Wage-Rate-Summary.aspx

Sykes, S. (2018, September 4). Quality Information, Informed Choices. Retrieved from https://www.qualityinfo.org/-/living-to-work-or-working-to-live-exploring-living-wages-in-oregon

U.S. Department of Labor. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/wages/minimumwage