Jeff Davis – 7/18/06

This page was last updated on July 18, 2006.

Praise Veon for wage hike; Jeff Davis, President Beaver-Lawrence Central Labor Council; Beaver County Times; July 18, 2006.

Please go here for more about my position regarding the minimum wage.

Below is a detailed critique of the letter.

“Contrary to the recent letter from Stephen Kislock, the working men and women of Beaver County and Pennsylvania owe a debt of gratitude, not to the Republican Party, but rather to our own State Rep. Mike Veon for the minimum wage increase.”

[RWC] Mr. Veon doesn’t represent Beaver County, only a portion of the 14^th district. I wrote “a portion of the 14^th district” because Mr. Veon tends to represent only liberal positions, and it’s safe to say not everyone in the 14^th district is a liberal.

You may also be interested to know from where Veon’s campaign contributions come. As of July 18^th, of the top 15 ZIP codes from where Veon 2006 contributions came, the only one (15074 - Rochester) in his district came in #13.

“Make no mistake, it was Mike Veon who exercised the leadership to get the legislation positioned for a vote in the state House. No, the minimum wage in Pennsylvania was increased, not because of the Republicans, but in spite of them.

“The truth is, those ‘leaders’ identified by Mr. Kislock went kicking and screaming in the passage of the legislation. In fact, as we lobbied for several years to get this minimum wage increase passed, it was very clear that Republican leaders in the legislature were putting every roadblock up possible to stop us.”

[RWC] This is the same stuff we heard from other Veon boosters. If fill-in-the-blank happens, Veon deserves the credit. If fill-in-the-blank doesn’t happen, someone else is to blame.

Mr. Davis appears to confuse conservatives with Republicans. If Republicans had opposed the increase, it would not have passed because representatives with an “R” after their name hold the majority in the General Assembly. Sadly, conservatives don’t.

“Mike Veon repeatedly advocated action on increasing the minimum wage, bringing it up at every opportunity. Mike recognized that there had not been an increase for almost 10 years, and he knew the Republican-controlled Congress was unlikely to pass one on the national level. Mike Veon is the strongest advocate for working men and women in the General Assembly, bar none. No matter how some seek to spin the issue, don't be fooled. It is Mike Veon who gives voice to working people in the state capitol.”

[RWC] In case you’re interested, Mr. Veon is one of labor union management’s “boys” in Harrisburg. Of the top 20 contributors to Mr. Veon’s 2006 campaign, 13 are labor unions.

“To our working brothers and sisters, we join you in applauding the minimum wage increase. At the same time, remember it was Mike Veon who led the charge.”

[RWC] Who are “we?”

Since union members tend to be paid more than minimum wage, you may wonder why labor union management would be happy. You see, since wages are relative, pushing up the minimum wage gives labor union management the opportunity to push for more pay for its members. In some cases, contracts include provisions for automatic pay increases if the minimum wage increases. And what does more pay for its members mean? It means more dues for labor union management to spend on accumulating political power.

Since few minimum wage earners are union members, labor union management really doesn’t care if any of these jobs are lost or if their growth is stunted by this wage control.