City Government

OP-ED: Support the Campaign to Raise Oakland’s Minimum Wage

Published

10 years ago

February 14, 2014

By Dan Siegel

I am announcing my support of the campaign organized by Local 1021 of the SEIU and a coalition of community organizations to increase Oakland’s minimum wage to $12.25/hr. and to provide paid sick leave to all workers in the City.

Increasing the minimum wage to $12.25 is an important step towards my goal of implementing a $15 minimum.

According to the Living Wage Calculator developed by MIT’s Department of Urban Studies and Planning, the living wage for a single adult in Oakland is now $11.51 per hour.

If that adult is responsible for the care of one child, the living wage necessary to support the wage earner and her family is $23.22.

Yet California’s minimum wage is now $8 –the federal minimum is $7.25, and even San Francisco’s minimum, which rises based upon increases in the cost of living, is $10.74.

The Economic Policy Institute says that if the federal minimum wage had kept up with increases in labor productivity since 1968, it would now be $18.28.

As more and more adults are forced into minimum wage jobs, one result is that millions of full-time employees qualify for food stamps, rental assistance, and other taxpayer funded welfare programs.

In other words, we all subsidize Wal-Mart, McDonalds, and other low wage employers that do not pay their workers enough to provide for their food, housing and medical care.

The average age of the minimum age earner in the U.S. is 35; most work full time; and over one-fourth are parents.

These facts explain the growing movement across the United States to address income inequality by raising the minimum wage to $15. I support the Fight for $15 movement, led by low wageworkers and unions across the country. This movement is now starting to be taken seriously by politicians, including the mayors of Seattle and San Francisco.

My campaign for mayor is based on the premise that we can create a safe and prosperous city only by insuring that all Oaklanders enjoy social and economic justice.

A society that condemns large numbers of its members to lives of poverty, unemployment, inequality and despair cannot long survive. Increasing the minimum wage is an important step towards creating a just society, towards creating a city in which all people have a stake in living together in peace and harmony.

Oakland civil rights attorney Dan Siegel is one of the candidates running to become mayor of Oakland.

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Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

Published

5 days ago

April 26, 2024

Oakland Post

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Alameda County

DA Pamela Price Stands by Mom Who Lost Son to Gun Violence in Oakland

Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018.

Published

1 week ago

April 22, 2024

Oakland Post

District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones

Publisher’s note: Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018. The photo was too small for readers to see where the women were and what they were doing. Here we show Price and Jones as they complete a walk in memory of Scott. For more information and to contribute, please contact Carol Jones at 510-978-5517 at morefoundation.help@gmail.com. Courtesy photo.

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City Government

Vallejo Welcomes Interim City Manager Beverli Marshall

At Tuesday night’s Council meeting, the Vallejo City Council appointed Beverli Marshall as the interim city manager. Her tenure in the City Manager’s Office began today, Wednesday, April 10. Mayor Robert McConnell praised Marshall’s extensive background, noting her “wide breadth of experience in many areas that will assist the City and its citizens in understanding the complexity of the many issues that must be solved” in Vallejo.

Published

1 week ago

April 22, 2024

Oakland Post

Beverli Marshall began her first day with the City on April 10. ICMA image.

Special to The Post

At Tuesday night’s Council meeting, the Vallejo City Council appointed Beverli Marshall as the interim city manager. Her tenure in the City Manager’s Office began today, Wednesday, April 10.

Mayor Robert McConnell praised Marshall’s extensive background, noting her “wide breadth of experience in many areas that will assist the City and its citizens in understanding the complexity of the many issues that must be solved” in Vallejo.

Current City Manager Michael Malone, whose official departure is slated for April 18, expressed his well wishes. “I wish the City of Vallejo and Interim City Manager Marshall all the best in moving forward on the progress we’ve made to improve service to residents.” Malone expressed his hope that the staff and Council will work closely with ICM Marshall to “ensure success and prosperity for the City.”

According to the Vallejo Sun, Malone stepped into the role of interim city manager in 2021 and became permanent in 2022. Previously, Malone served as the city’s water director and decided to retire from city service e at the end of his contract which is April 18.

“I hope the excellent work of City staff will continue for years to come in Vallejo,” he said. “However, recent developments have led me to this decision to announce my retirement.”

When Malone was appointed, Vallejo was awash in scandals involving the housing division and the police department. A third of the city’s jobs went unfilled during most of his tenure, making for a rocky road for getting things done, the Vallejo Sun reported.

At last night’s council meeting, McConnell explained the selection process, highlighting the council’s confidence in achieving positive outcomes through a collaborative effort, and said this afternoon, “The Council is confident that by working closely together, positive results will be obtained.”

While the search for a permanent city manager is ongoing, an announcement is expected in the coming months.

On behalf of the City Council, Mayor McConnell extended gratitude to the staff, citizen groups, and recruitment firm.

“The Council wishes to thank the staff, the citizens’ group, and the recruitment firm for their diligent work and careful consideration for the selection of what is possibly the most important decision a Council can make on behalf of the betterment of our City,” McConnell said.

The Vallejo Sun contributed to this report.