Minneapolis City Council votes to pass Labor Standards Board

Mpls City Council passes Labor Standards Board [RAW]

Minneapolis City Council passed the Labor Standards Board during a vote on Thursday. Council members Katie Cashman, Aisha Chughtai and Aurin Chowdhury join community members in a press conference after the vote.

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - The Minneapolis City Council voted in favor of creating a Labor Standards Board on Thursday, which has drawn ire from the business community.

What we know

The Minneapolis City Council met Thursday morning with an agenda item to vote on a resolution to establish a Labor Standards Board.

After a heated and lengthy discussion, the city council members voted 9-3 in favor of the resolution. Council members Linea Palmisano, Michael Rainville and LaTrisha Vetaw voted against it.

At the start of the discussion, multiple council members spoke about wanting to send the proposal back to the committee for further discussion and having public hearings, thus delaying action on the proposal.

"I do believe that we need more time and especially to allow the public to weigh in on this. To not have a public hearing would be really bad democracy, bad government. It would be incredibly bad transparency for what we’re trying to do," said council member Rainville. "We see the interest in this. Let’s slow this down a little, give more time, and especially so we can review all the amendments that were thrown on us overnight."

However, the proposal failed in a deadlock vote.

Council members then heard four amendments to the resolution, three of which failed. An amendment co-authored by council members Katie Cashman and Emily Koski which suggested changes to sectoral workgroup duties, passed with 11 members voting yes, and Vetaw voting against it.

Context

Minneapolis council to vote on Labor Standards Board

The Minneapolis City Council will vote on a controversial measure on Thursday that has drawn ire from the business community. The proposal, which would create a Labor Standards Board, would task a 15-member panel with making recommendations to the city council and mayor about wages, benefits, working conditions and other regulations.

The proposal would task a 15-member panel with making recommendations to the city council and mayor about wages, benefits, working conditions and other regulations.

The appointed panel would consist of representatives for employees, businesses and workplace experts. It would cost taxpayers $150,000 per year, which would pay for the salary of a coordinator.

While supporters said the effort would give workers a voice, business owners feared it would create costly hurdles.

Meanwhile, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey’s Office issued a statement on Wednesday saying the current board proposal needs some work.

"The mayor has long supported a Labor Standards Board that is balanced, but the council’s proposal is not. This lack of balance has led the business community to pull out and not participate. This doesn’t work. The mayor’s position is simple: get participation from both business and labor and pass a balanced board that can benefit good governance," the statement reads.