Wage hike will settle schedules
The article on computer-generated employment scheduling was interesting (“Workers guess on hours,” Nov. 15). I do feel sorry for the employees it affects. A work schedule posted a week in advance...
View ArticleBring Albany High into 21st century
We, voters of Albany, have an opportunity to bring Albany High School into the 21st century with a facilities vote on Feb. 9. We have been presented with a scaled-back renovation and construction...
View ArticleConfront Saudis on unfair oil monopoly
The latest elephant in the room on Wall Street and Main Street is the current decision by Saudi Arabia to monopolize the market by overproduction of oil in order to drop prices so low the rest of the...
View ArticleInvest in future of Albany students
It’s time for Albany residents to approve a needed investment in our future. Physical improvements to a school building may not lead to drastic academic improvement; yet, it’s clear these changes will...
View ArticleSuperintendent needed more time
I am troubled by the resignation of the Albany School Superintendent Marguerite Vanden Wyngaard. While I was optimistic about our district this past fall, when so many individuals wanted to serve on...
View ArticleLikely tax increase fails to reflect reassessments
Albanians will vote a second time on the Albany High School (reconstruction) referendum on Tuesday. Albany city government will mail homeowners new property assessments around March 1. I am speculating...
View ArticleOK environmental budget proposals
Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s proposed 2016-17 state budget includes record environmental funding that is good for Adirondack water, wildlife, wilderness, and communities. These bold environmental investments...
View ArticleBusiness owners not the best gauge of wage hike
I am not surprised there are voices coming from the small business community expressing concern about the proposed wage increase. Rarely are business owners excited to increase their labor costs – and...
View ArticleHourly wage hike an economic boost
Raising the minimum wage will reduce jobs, but most of those are doomed and likely to disappear with or without an increase in the minimum wage. Every increase in the minimum wage raises income among...
View ArticleSalary should provide a family’s minimum needs
Maureen Abbott’s view that employees looking for an increase in wages should ask for an increase, find a higher paying job or move to another area of the country to find employment is not realistic for...
View ArticleDon’t delay the wage hike
When a special wage board last year recommended raising the minimum wage for fast food workers to $15, we weren’t enthused about the timeline – as long as six years for workers upstate. But we...
View ArticleGoing beyond opting out
If the Capital Region is any indication, the opt-out fever may finally have broken. The prognosis, however, remains guarded. The question now is whether both sides can work on what should be the common...
View ArticleUpstate deserves same wage hike
I just received a newsletter from Assemblymember Patricia A. Fahy, D-Albany, concerning her community report. While I applaud her record and accomplishments, careful reading of the increase in wages...
View ArticlePay hike must be earned
In the ongoing debate about whether New York state legislators should receive a potential 47 percent pay raise, the best strategy for most current lawmakers seems to be shut up and do nothing. Only...
View ArticleIncrease boosts insurers’ profits
The article “Workers’ comp rates up,” July 20, is misleading and raises the question: Who and what is really behind the increase? Loss cost is only one of a number of factors that go into determining...
View ArticleA look at pay hike by the numbers
The Public Employees Federation finds the information in the article, “48% pay hike for state lawmakers?” Aug. 3, lacking context. The article states that Grade 29 PEF members at the top of the salary...
View ArticleBoard’s stand against apartments makes sense
The Albany County Planning Board recently recommended against the rezoning of Loughlin Street stating the proposed increase in density would be extreme in comparison to present use and homes in the...
View ArticleTeacher impact also merits value
The Empire Center recently came out with its latest report on public school spending in New York state and found salaries increasing, on average, for teachers in New York state. While I fully...
View ArticleAn honest, painful plan
When municipal debt outpaces revenues year after year and reserves have all but dried up, a major course correction is needed. In the city of Troy, such a reset is long overdue and it cannot happen...
View ArticleDon’t raise lawmaker pay
How can any pay raise be approved for one of the most dysfunctional legislatures in the United States? What’s proposed would be a huge 48 percent pay raise for an Assembly and Senate racked with...
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