BROWNSVILLE, Texas - A campaign in support of the region's domestic workers is being launched today by backers who saying they are central to the ongoing prosperity of the Rio Grande Valley.

These job-seekers often don't understand their rights, said Hector Guzman Lopez, coordinator of the Fuerza del Valle Workers' Center, and some employers take advantage.

"People have this hacienda mentality, plantation mentality, that, 'Well, it's an immigrant worker and they stay with me, so I can pay them whatever I want. I'm feeding them.' But that's not the case," he said. "Labor law clarifies that you need to pay domestic workers at least $7.25 an hour, as well as any other employee."

In one recent case, Lopez said, a domestic worker reported that she was paid what worked out to just $1.67 an hour. In addition to the right to the minimum wage, he added, domestic employees also have the right to respect and dignity in the workplace - regardless of their immigration status.

Citing misconceptions about the rights of domestic workers among both employers and employees, Lopez said a key to their campaign is education.

"We will be doing lots and lots of presentations at different community centers and with different community organizations, just letting people know first of all that there are certain rights," Lopez said. "And second, if people want to take action or they need help or they need support, there are organizations that support them."

The Fuerza del Valle Workers' Center is a project of the Rio Grande Valley Equal Voice Network. Domestic workers with questions can call 956-283-5650 or email fuerzadelvalle@gmail.com. More information is online at facebook.com/pages/Fuerza-del-Valle.




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The so-called "great resignation" isn't playing out for all workers. A new survey covering North Dakota and Minnesota shows people on the lower end of the income scale face obstacles in jumping to other job opportunities.

The Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank, along with Community Action agencies in both states, heard from more than 200 individuals, mainly working in social services, education and health care. Most expressed a desire to move up the career ladder, but said they lack the resources to learn new skills, or that expenses such as child care get in the way.

Erick Garcia Luna, regional outreach director at the Minneapolis Fed, said it becomes more pronounced for people earning very little in their current job.

"If a family is making minimum wage," he said, "they're going to have a harder time taking the time, for example, to get trained for another job."

Nearly 60% of respondents making between $10,000 and $25,000 dollars a year said it's either "somewhat or very difficult" to make an occupational change. Community Action Partnership of North Dakota said the survey also revealed these individuals are finding it harder to meet basic needs amid rising inflation, but also can't afford to pursue a better-paying job.

Ashley Littlewolf, workforce development case manager lead at the Southeastern North Dakota Community Action Agency, said she sees a lot of overlap with these barriers.

"They're feeding each other, the barriers are increasing each other," she said. "That need for new skills, and then finding the day care - and also, the jobs not paying enough."

While some employers are offering better pay, Littlewolf said the findings should prompt more action to boost starting wages. She said expanding the hiring pool can help, too.

"Taking a chance on someone who may not have that experience," she said, "but offering on-site training, offering the opportunity for them to enter that career path without the experience or education."

President Joe Biden is calling on oil and gas companies to start steering record profits away from shareholder pockets to give Americans some relief at the pump.

A new economic analysis suggests the approach could be key to lowering prices across the board.

Josh Bivens, research director for the Economic Policy Institute, recently deconstructed each major component impacting prices over the past year, including wages, corporate profits and supply-chain issues.

"It's overwhelmingly profits, it's not wages," Bivens reported. "Normally profits are about 11% to 12% of the final price of any good. But they contributed more than 50% to price growth over the 2020-21 period."

Normally, wages contribute about 60% to the price of goods, but last year labor came in at just under 8%. Supply-chain disruptions accounted for 38% of rising costs. Calls for a windfall profits tax have been largely absent in debates on how to tackle inflation, with some economists noting the drive to increase corporate profits is just business as usual.

Analysis by the group Accountable.US found top corporations producing food, energy, commodities, health care and housing delivered more than $140 billion to shareholders after raising prices.

Bivens argued a temporary tax on profits could help counterbalance the pricing power companies currently have over consumers.

"If the policy recommendation is to just ask them politely not to raise prices, that would be silly," Bivens contended. "But it really does put some policy options on the table, like an excess profits tax. You reduce the incentive to raise prices, you're not harming the economy's ability to move resources around in the long run."

Recent polling by Global Strategy Group suggests Americans are not buying the argument inflation is being driven by aggregate demand racing ahead of supply.

Seven in 10 Republicans, eight in 10 Independents, and nine in 10 Democrats blame corporate greed for rapidly rising prices.

The latest county census data found Michigan's child poverty rate remains at 19%, and groups advocating for children and families say it is time to raise the state Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC).

Michigan residents are grappling with inflation, including high prices for food and gasoline, increased costs of child care and other basic needs.

Monique Stanton, president and CEO of the Michigan League for Public Policy, said the census figures show now is an important time to put money into working families' hands. She noted nearly every aspect of children's lives improves when their parents are on better financial footing.

"The amount of the tax credit that you get increases based on the number of children that you have, and it's also impacted by what your particular income is," Stanton explained. "In Michigan, we have a rate of only 6% of the federal credit, that's one of the lowest rates across the country. And we have an opportunity to substantially increase the rate."

Stanton noted lawmakers are introducing increases of 20% to 30%. She pointed out children of color have higher poverty rates, roughly two to three times higher than for white children, and the EITC is one strategy to reduce childhood poverty rates equitably.

Matt Gillard, president and CEO of the group Michigan's Children, acknowledged the state has long struggled with high poverty rates for families with children, even before the pandemic. He said because the money from the EITC often goes right back into the local economy, bipartisan groups of lawmakers and the business community are in support.

"Putting this money back into the hands of working families dramatically improves their position and their situation," Gillard emphasized. "And helps them meet the costs of raising children, and helps benefit the lives of those children, but also help helps local economies."

Studies have shown greater access to the EITC leads to lower rates of infant mortality, offsets some racial disparities in the tax system and can even lead to greater earnings for children later in life.

It has been shown to improve test scores, especially for boys, children under 12, Black and Latino children and those with unmarried parents.