Grapevine: Classic bait-and-switch over minimum wage
Los Angeles labor unions seek exemption from minimum wage hike
And now some fresh pickings from the Political Grapevine...
Bait-and-Switch
A classic bait and switch on the West coast.
Last week -- Los Angeles labor leaders helped push a minimum wage hike through the city council.
Now -- the Los Angeles Times reports -- the Federation of Labor wants all companies with unionized workers -- to be exempt -- from the $15 an hour mandate.
The justification -- quote -- "With a collective bargaining agreement, a business owner and the employees negotiate an agreement that works for them both. The agreement allows each party to prioritize what is important to them."
Some people have an issue with the hypocrisy.
The local Chamber of Commerce says the change could pressure companies to unionize -- just to dodge the wage hike.
Quote-- "Once again -- the soaring rhetoric of helping the working poor is just a cover for city government acting as a tool of organized labor."
No Pot for Feds
A friendly reminder from the federal government— just because pot may be legal where you live-- that doesn't mean government workers are allowed to smoke it.
Marijuana is legal in a number of states -- and here in Washington.
But the director of the Office of Personnel Management says that does not matter for government workers.
"Federal law on marijuana remains unchanged. Drug involvement can raise questions about an individual's reliability, judgment, and trustworthiness or ability or willingness to comply with laws, rules, and regulations."
The memo adds -- individual conduct will be looked at on a case-by-case basis.
The Cat's Meow
Finally -- the investigation into global soccer and a glimpse into the excess of FIFA leaders.
Chuck Blazer -- a former high-ranking FIFA official -- now government informant -- was key to the massive and just-revealed corruption probe into the soccer organization.
The New York Daily News outlined his life of wealth -- including his $6,000 a month apartment -- just for his cats.
Then there are the crimes -- like not paying income tax for more than a decade -- coordinating bribes -- and taking kickbacks.
Blazer -- who is said to be gravely ill with colon cancer -- turned informant in 2011 -- but still pleaded guilty to a number of felonies.
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