Courtesy of Mish.
This is my first submission to the Illinois Policy Institute, a nonprofit, non-political organization that deserves your support.
Illinois Chamber Misses the Boat on Right-to-Work
The Illinois Chamber of Commerce recently took interesting, as well as contradictory, positions regarding the minimum wage and Right-to-Work legislation.
On one hand, the chamber is not in favor of minimum-wage hikes for Illinois. On the other, the chamber says “Illinois doesn’t need right to work (laws) to compete with its neighbors.”
At the root of both of these policy issues is the state’s ability to compete and attract job creators. If the chamber acknowledges that a minimum-wage increase is a jobs killer, how can it oppose Right to Work, which is proven to attract new businesses?
Contradictory positions
The Chicago Tribune highlighted the chamber’s positions in the article, “Minimum wage battles to continue in 2015.”
Chicago’s minimum wage will rise to $13 an hour in 2019 from the current $8.25 an hour.
The Tribune noted the organizations that came out against the hike:
“Business groups, including the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce and Illinois Restaurant Association, said the city’s measure was a job killer. They warned that Chicago’s increase would drive many companies out of the city and force others to layoff employees or to close. Raising minimum wage, they said, has a domino effect as higher-paid workers also will expect increases, putting more pressure on the profitability of small businesses.”
“We will be resisting a minimum wage increase very heavily,” said Illinois Chamber of Commerce Chief Executive Todd Maisch, adding that minimum-wage increases put employers at a competitive disadvantage.
Strangely, Maisch also contended “Illinois doesn’t need right to work (laws) to compete with its neighbors.”
Those positions are contradictory. To understand why, one must investigate the tie between “prevailing wage” laws, Right-to-Work laws and collective bargaining….
