Today is Business Day up at the legislature, and for the first time in a couple of years, I’m not there for the “festivities.” I guess you could consider it a silent protest. It seems like the various Chambers of Commerce have gone crazy for the third year in a row.
First, there was that nonsense of them supporting the Governor’s raid on the permanent fund. That was followed by the effort to fund Pre-K programs despite the fact that our K-12 performance is sorely lacking. Now, the coup de grace… they are lobbying for a statewide increase in the minimum wage.
Are you people nuts?
Business people don’t need to lobby to raise the minimum wage. We just need to pay employees more than the minimum wage. It’s pretty simple. If the Chambers feel so strongly about this issue, then make Chamber membership available only to those who pay their employees more than the minimum.
These past and current efforts send the wrong message. So, just cut it out.