Local and state leaders will join citizens groups and unions today to establish ways to build on the momentum gained after the defeat of Proposition A. A town hall meeting at Oppenstein Brothers Park in Kansas City will discuss how to increase wages to at least $15 an hour for low-wage workers. Jessica Podhola, director […]
Tag: labor
Show-Me-Select rules require genetically tested bull EPDs
New sire selection rules for Show-Me-Select Replacement Heifers improve reliable calving-ease genetics. “Bulls used in the heifer program will carry DNA-tested EPDs (expected progeny differences),” said Jared Decker, University of Missouri Extension geneticist. The rules going into effect Feb. 1, 2019, were set by the SMS governing board of farmers. “DNA tests add reliability to EPDs […]
Nestlé Purina commits $1 million to Ducks Unlimited in Iowa to help boost water quality
Ducks Unlimited and Nestlé Purina PetCare Company have partnered to protect and improve 1,600 acres of wetland and grasslands across Iowa over the next three years through Ducks Unlimited’s Living Lakes Initiative, promoting healthy soil, healthy crops, and healthy wildlife habitat. Purina, which operates three pet food manufacturing facilities in Iowa (in Clinton, Fort Dodge […]
Grundy County unemployment rate remains stable
Grundy County’s latest unemployment rate of 4-1/2% is the same as the previous month. The June jobless rate for Grundy County includes 210 residents on unemployment out of a civilian labor force of nearly 4,700. One year ago, in June, Grundy County had a rate of 3.7% with 179 on unemployment. The latest rates among […]
Audio: Missouri unions win major victory in failure of Right-to-work measure
(Missourinet) – The move by Republicans in the Missouri Legislature to switch Proposition A from November to August in hopes of a favorable turnout has backfired. Right-to-work opponents, including Jack Cardetti, have strongly defeated the measure that would have banned forced union membership or dues as a condition of employment. Dan Mehan with […]
Serve Trenton event set for September 29th and 30th
The dates have been set for this year’s Serve Trenton which is an event established to provide an opportunity for community members to come together to serve the community. The Serve Trenton event will be held September 29th and 30th and is set to start at the C. F. Russell Stadium. If there is inclement […]
Audio: Opposition thought to have advantage in Tuesday’s Right to Work vote in Missouri
Voters will determine if Missouri becomes a right to work state in Tuesday’s election. Matt Panik with the Missouri Chamber of Commerce, which supports the measure, says his side is being vastly outspent by pro-union organizations who oppose the proposal. He estimates opposition groups have spent $17 million while proponents have raised only $2 million […]
Environmentalists step up to oppose “Right To Work”
Voters will decide in less than a week whether Missouri will become a right-to-work state, potentially weakening unions. It isn’t just union members and labor groups opposing Proposition A: Environmentalists are standing against the right-to-work proposition as well. Dennis Roach, a former engineer, and union member and a current member of the Sierra Club said unions […]
Hospital workforce challenges persist in Missouri
A new report from the Missouri Hospital Association finds increased turnover rates among the majority of hospital-based healthcare positions. Vacancy rates decreased for several employee categories, including registered nurses, between 2016 and 2017. However, combined turnover among all professions surveyed increased statewide from 16 percent in 2016 to 17.7 percent in 2017. “Every Missourian has […]
AgriVision Equipment lends support to Northwest Missouri State Ag Learning Center
AgriVision Equipment Group, a locally owned and operated farming equipment company with 17 locations across southern Iowa, has added its support to Northwest Missouri State University’s School of Agricultural Sciences and a planned Agricultural Learning Center at the University’s R.T. Wright Farm, pledging $100,000 toward the project. “We are so grateful and appreciative of the […]
Audio: Right to Work opponents mobilize ahead of next week’s Missouri primary election
(Missourinet) – Opponents of a Right To Work measure continue to urge voters to defeat the ballot initiative ahead of next week’s primary election. During a press conference, today in St. Louis, Amy Blouin of the Missouri Budget Project says banning mandatory union fees would have a negative impact on all workers, not just organized […]
New leadership elected for Missouri Soybean Merchandising Council
A Cooper County soybean farmer has been selected by a group of his peers to lead the Missouri Soybean Merchandising Council. Robert Alpers of Prairie Home, Mo. was named the organization’s chairman following a vote by the board of directors during their summer meeting in Jefferson City. Robert Alpers “I am honored to take on […]
Missouri’s top 30 FFA members attend HYPE Academy
Missouri’s top 30 FFA high school seniors completed the fourth annual Helping Youth Prepare for Excellence (HYPE) FFA Academy June 26-28, in Columbia The three-day intensive program is designed to inform and empower students to effectively engage in pressing agriculture topics. Since 2015, the Missouri Corn Merchandising Council has sponsored and facilitated the academy in […]
The Pros and Cons of Right-To-Work and how they might affect you
The term “right to work’ relates to or promotes the right of a worker to be able to obtain employment without being required to join a labor union to do so. When right to work laws are in place, workers cannot be compelled to pay for any cost of union representation, even if the union […]
Audio: Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft Discusses August Right-to-Work Referendum
(Missourinet) – For the first time in more than 36 years, Missourians will be casting ballots on what’s known as a referendum. The right-to-work referendum will appear on your August 7th statewide ballot. A referendum involves a bill approved by the Missouri Legislature, which in this case is a 2017 right-to-work bill. Labor unions were […]
Chillicothe YMCA approved as Neighborhood Assistance Program participant
The YMCA facility in Chillicothe is among approved participants in a Neighborhood Assistance Program project through the Missouri Department of Economic Development. Grand River Area Family YMCA will use tax credit funds to enhance its Y-Pals youth mentoring programs and the Backpack Buddies weekend feeding programs. The latter targets low-income children, families and adults and […]
Protesters turning out for Vice President Pence’s Missouri visit
Protesters are turning out as Vice President Mike Pence attends a fundraiser in Missouri Thursday. Pence is speaking at an event promoting the Trump administration’s tax cut and to raise money for Republican Josh Hawley, who is challenging U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill in the November election. Jessica Estes, a statewide organizer with NARAL Pro-Choice Missouri, expects […]
Audio: Chillicothe to showcase history of sliced bread during Sliced Bread Day on Saturday
(Missourinet) – On July 7, 1928, the Chillicothe Baking Company in northwest Missouri became the first commercial bakery in recorded history to have bread mechanically cut into uniform slices. The invention, developed by Otto Rohwedder of Iowa, revolutionized the baking world. To celebrate the 90-year milestone, the town of Chillicothe is gearing up for its […]
Grundy County’s unemployment rate increases in May
Grundy county’s unemployment rate has increased when comparing May with April. The latest rate available from the state shows Grundy County has a rate of four and a half percent in May which is up by four tenths from April. The May rate is based on 218 people on unemployment out of a civilian labor […]
Audio: U.S. Senate passes farm bill; restrictions on SNAP defeated
The full Senate overwhelmingly passed its version of the 2018 farm bill late Thursday afternoon. Ag Committee Chairman Pat Roberts of Kansas says bipartisan collaboration was key in garnering the support needed to push the bill across the finish line. Speaking on the Senate floor after the final votes were tallied, Ranking Member […]