Workers Rights & Wages
Examples and Resources
Maryland Fair Share Health Care Act
SB 790, known as the “Fair Share Health Care Act,” requires companies with more than 10,000 employees to spend at least 8 percent of their payroll on health benefits, or pay the balance into a state low-income health insurance fund. Maryland became the first state in the country to set…
Dukes v. Wal-Mart Store, Inc. (2003)
In August of 2005, the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals heard arguments on Wal- Mart’s policy of sexual discrimination against women. The lawsuit, based on statistical disparities in pay and promotion, was certified a year ago to represent 1.6 million present and former female employees, and…
The United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed an action against Wal-Mart to enforce Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and Title I of the Civil Rights Act. The Commission alleged that Wal-Mart discriminated against Steve Sanders by failing to accommodate his disability,…
New York City Health Care Security Act (2005)
The goal of this law is to “help responsible businesses continue offering health care and expand access to health care for tens of thousands of working New Yorkers and their families, while indirectly saving tax-payers money.” Responding to Wal-Mart’s efforts to open stores in Manhattan, and…
Suffolk County Fair Share for Health Care Act (2005)
This Long Island, New York bill requires large supermarkets, including big box retailers that sell groceries, to contribute $3 in health care costs for each hour their employees work. Without pointing a finger directly at the world’s largest retailer, the legislature stated the proposed law’s…
An Ordinance To Require Responsible Business Practices (2004)
Chicago, Illinois ordinance requires retailers 100,000 s.f. or more to pay a “living wage” of $10.42/hour, adjusted annually, plus benefits of $3.00/hour; allows the public to distribute literature at stores; requires affirmative action hiring; free speech in the workplace.
Large Retail Establishment Tax
In several states, including Maine and Minnesota, lawmakers are considering bills that would place a tax on the revenues of “large retail establishments” like Wal-Mart, which have receipts in excess of $20 million per year, and do not pay their employees at least $22,000 per year (including wages,…
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