What's really going on.

Here is what has happened since 2001 in Sangamon County, regarding the workforce:

Raising the Minimum Wage

AlJazeera

Seattle restaurant workers report 'serious problems' despite $15 wage law

PJ Media

Seattle $15 an Hour Phased-In Minimum Wage Law Has Cost 700 jobs

Western Journalism

Seattle Raised Minimum Wage To $15- What Immediately Happened Will Have Them Regretting It

Independent Journal

Seattle’s Minimum Wage Hike Is Underway. A Damning Chart Shows How That’s Working Out…

Economic Policy Instutite

Employment and the Minimum Wage—Evidence from Recent State Labor Market Trends AND What Families Need to Get By

Civic Skunk Works

YOU SHOULD READ THIS STORY ABOUT SEATTLE’S “MINIMUM WAGE MELTDOWN THAT NEVER HAPPENED”

The Stranger

How a $15 Minimum Wage Would Make Everyone Richer

One Seattle Coalition

OneSeattle Coalition is a growing and diverse coalition of local businesses, non-profits, manufacturers and restaurants.

I recently started a poll at Google+ asking "what if every minimum wage worker had an extra $7 per hour to spend?" It sparked a discussion about costs of doing business, inflation and potential reduction in employment.

I decided to collect some articles about it and I was not really surprised where the line was drawn on opinions and research "findings."

If you ever wanted to know which media source was liberal or conservative, looking up their opinions about raising the minimum wage is a glaring test.

STRIKE

Why do we need to fight for fair wages, safe working conditions and the right tools we need for the job? The people are getting sick and tired of the greed, contempt and neglect. The people should not suffer. Here are some strikes the main-stream press is not covering.

Oil Workers
http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2015/02/08/3620627/oil-workers-strike-grows-to-include-ohio-indiana/

Longshoremans of the West Coast ports. Handling our imports and exports.
http://www.breitbart.com/california/2015/02/06/longshoremans-union-to-strike-29-west-coast-ports/

After a six-day strike, Unite Here Local 5 Kaiser Permanente employees say: mission accomplished.
http://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/story/28053732/no-agreement-yet-as-kaiser-workers-head-back-to-work-after-week-long-strike

Potential strike at USC
http://intersectionssouthla.org/story/worker-delivers-tearful-plea-to-usc-president-to-increase-wages/

Aramark workers call for equal treatment
http://georgetownvoice.com/2015/02/05/serving-up-justice-aramark-workers-call-for-equal-treatment/

We desperately need to rebuild our unions.
http://www.themilitant.com/2015/7905/790555.html