Prevailing Wage Bill, National Politics Review, How The Middle Class Is Changing

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While many agree that a strong middle class is important for a healthy economy, fewer can agree on what “middle-class” really means. We discuss who makes up the middle class, and how things have changed. We also examine the latest news out of Washington this week, and cover today’s public hearing on a bill that would repeal the state’s prevailing wage law.

Featured in this Show

  • Walker Says He Would Sign Repeal Of Prevailing Wage Law

    A bill calling for the repeal of the state’s prevailing wage law received momentum on Wednesday when Gov. Scott Walker indicated that he would sign the bill if it should land on his desk or were inserted into the budget.

    “Gov. Walker would sign a full repeal,” said Laurel Patrick, Walker’s spokeswoman. “This is one of a number of important issues that he is working with legislators on for the budget.”

    The statement came just hours ahead of Wednesday’s public hearing on the topic in the Assembly’s Labor Committee. The Associated Press reported that state Rep. Andre Jacque, R-DePere, and head of the committee, said he had enough votes to approve the repeal.

    “Today, Walker’s office is saying that he would sign it and that he’s been working for weeks to either reform the prevailing wage law or repeal it. That gives momentum to the folks who want to repeal it,” said Patrick Marley, state Capitol reporter at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

    The 84-year-old policy sets a minimum wage for construction workers building publicly funded projects. Support and opposition to the bill falls on party lines.

    Marley said that Republicans believe the law artificially inflates wages and makes projects more expensive. Democrats, he added, are worried a repeal will scale back wages, and only further illustrates the GOP’s efforts to break up union power.

    “Opponents of this say you get a race to the bottom and the last place you skimp on a public project is on the quality of work. And they say if you’re paying good wages, you can help middle class jobs,” Marley said.

    There have been previous efforts to repeal the law. Last month, the state Senate’s Labor Committee failed to pass a repeal of the law after a Republican state senator voted along with Democrats. The committee then debated a rewrite of the law that would have raised the threshold at which the prevailing wage law is triggered, but that too failed to pass in committee.

    Marley said that most people are expecting it to be resolved one way or the other in the state budget, as opposed to state alone legislation.

    “If they don’t include it in the budget, it would be even harder to pass,” said Marley. “So. really what the proponents of (the repeal) are hoping is that they can build momentum and then have it inserted into the state budget. It’s a lot easier for lawmakers to vote on a change like that if it’s in the budget because they can go out and tell people they voted for it but only because they liked other things in the budget.”

  • Assembly's Labor Committee Hears Testimony On Possible Prevailing Wage Repeal

    The State Assembly’s Labor Committee heard testimony today on a bill that would repeal the state’s prevailing wage law, which sets a minimum wage for construction workers building publicly funded projects. A reporter breaks down today’s hearing.

  • This Week In Washington – May 27, 2015

    Political reporter at the Daily Mail, Francesca Chambers, joins Central Time for our weekly look at the most pressing issues in national politics.

  • Middle Class And Fearful

    The phrase “middle class” once represented the hopes and aspirations of many Americans. Now, it’s often seen as a source of anxiety, as a status that can be lost more easily than gained. A guest looks at the changing meaning of middle class in a time of economic worry.

Episode Credits

  • Rob Ferrett Host
  • Veronica Rueckert Host
  • Chris Malina Producer
  • Galen Druke Producer
  • Patrick Marley Guest
  • Francesca Chambers Guest
  • Mechele Dickerson Guest