Republicans in the Michigan Legislature could move this week to amend laws on minimum wage and paid sick time. A report predicts job growth will slow, but continue in Michigan over the next two years. WMU women’s basketball loses a close one on the road.
(WDET) Michigan Republicans in the state legislature are moving to change laws regarding minimum wages and paid sick time before Democratic Governor-elect Gretchen Whitmer formally takes office. GOP lawmakers approved increasing Michigan’s minimum wage so it would eventually reach 12 dollars an hour with workers who earn tips also receiving a wage boost. They also mandated that employers provide between 40 and 72 hours of paid sick time annually. Legislators took the action before voters could weigh in on potential ballot proposals that would have required a super-majority to change them. It will only take a simple majority vote by the Republican-controlled legislature to amend the laws which some GOP lawmakers complain could hinder Michigan’s economic growth.
A new economic forecast from the University of Michigan predicts that the state economy could slow, but job growth is likely to continue over the next two years. The forecast from U-M economists says the state is in the midst of the longest period of job growth since the World War II era. The report predicts that by the end of 2020, Michigan will have gained more than 683-thousand jobs since the recovery began in 2009. The University of Michigan economists say the state will have recouped nearly four out of five jobs lost since the mid 2000’s.
(Kalamazoo Gazette) Kalamazoo architect and photographer Norman Carver Jr. has died. The Kalamazoo Gazette says Carver passed away on Friday he was 90 years old. He designed about 150 houses, in the Kalamazoo area and around the country, and a Western Michigan University’s student housing complex. Carver also displayed his photographs at galleries and regularly as part of art hops in Kalamazoo.
AAA Michigan says people traveling for Thanksgiving will find the lowest gas prices for the holiday in two years. The current statewide averagefor a gallon of gas is $2.49 a gallon. Counties in Southwest Michigan are averaging between $2.33 and $2.38 a gallon. AAA estimates that 1.7-million Michigan residents will travel over Thanksgiving, most of them will reach their destination by car.
(WDET) Officials in Detroit want to change the name of a high school honoring Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson. School board officials say Carson’s policies are hurting the heavily-Democratic city’s majority black population. Detroit officials christened the Benjamin Carson High School of Science and Medicine in 2011 -- a tribute to the native son’s fame as a neurosurgeon. That was before Carson ran as a Republican for president in 2016 and then joined the Trump Administration. Now Detroit’s school board has begun the process of removing Carson’s name charging he’s not worthy of the tribute after trying to change Obama-era housing policies targeting segregation. Conservatives call it a purely political move. The Board says in the future it may wait until someone has died before naming a school after them.
In women’s basketball, Western Michigan lost at Mississippi Sunday 69-66. Deja Wimbey led the Broncos with 17 points. Western is 1-3 so far this season, and will be off until November 28th when they host Eastern Kentucky.