Nutter to Sign LGBT Rights Bill
At 3pm today, Mayor Nutter will sign a bill that will make Philadelphia the most LGBT-friendly city in the country, according to a press release. The legislation, sponsored by Councilman Jim Kenney, will provide the first “Life Partner and Transgender Health Tax Credits” in the country, offering tax incentives for private companies to provide benefits to...
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Poll Finds 77 Percent of Philly Supports Paid Sick Days
Supporter Janet Filante of Childspace Daycare City Council has until Thursday to find the 12th vote which would override Mayor Michael Nutter’s veto of the latest paid sick days bill, which passed through City Council by a vote of 11-6. In light of that, supporters held a rally in front of City Hall yesterday afternoon urging at least one of the six City Council...
Continue ReadingNutter Vetoes Paid Sick Leave—Again
Mayor Michael Nutter vetoed the paid sick leave bill this morning, claiming it would hurt “the very workers this bill is intended to help” via job cuts from local businesses who can’t pay for it. The decision is not a surprise, but a disappointment for the Philadelphia Coalition for Healthy Families and Workplaces, a collective of community organizing groups...
Continue ReadingNutter’s Paid Sick Leave Decision is Nigh
Mayor Nutter has until tomorrow to make a decision on earned paid sick leave for workers in Philadelphia. On March 14, City Council passed an earned sick leave bill by an 11-6 vote. The bill, introduced by Councilman Bill Greenlee, would allow workers without paid sick time to earn one hour for every 40 hours worked. It has a history of controversy amongst some...
Continue ReadingPaid Sick Leave Passes–But Will It Stick?
Hundreds of protesters showed up for Mayor Nutter’s budget speech this morning. Many of them, from unions like AFSCME DC 47, DC 33, were there to protest specifically against Nutter, being that three city unions are still working without contracts, and many blame the mayor for this. They chanted “Bozo sucks!” before the address began, holding signs of Nutter...
Continue ReadingUnion Protesters Drown Out Mayor Nutter’s Budget Speech
As expected, Mayor Michael Nutter gave a speech to a packed hall of union protesters, angry at the administration for having worked several years without a new negotiated contract. Things had been a little nutty throughout the morning, as the City Council debated earned sick leave and a couple other issues. Protesters had shown up early with signs portraying...
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Paid Sick Days Passes Committee After Sparks Fly in City Hall
The fight for paid sick days has been long, and yesterday’s hearing before the Public Health and Human Services Committee began bright and early, with several advocates meeting media before the session began to tell their stories. “We have found that treating workers fairly is good for business,” said Janet Filante, owner of Childspace Daycare. “This...
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Q&A: Philly Guerrilla Artist Huggie on Mayor Nutter AVI Art
This spring, the city is expected to overhaul our property tax system. Instead of tax rates that are based on property assessments from 2004 and, in some cases, the 1980s, each city property has been re-assessed and likely taxed at around 1.25 percent (though the final number is still unknown). What that means, in layman’s terms: your taxes are probably...
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VP Biden Talks Gun Violence at Girard College
Commissioner Ramsey, Vice President Biden, Mayor Nutter (photo by Tara Murtha) Vice President Joe Biden was in town yesterday to meet with state and local leaders on the topic of gun violence. The working roundtable, hosted by Girard College, was private, but press was allowed statements at the end. “There is a sense of urgency in the United States of America,”...
Continue ReadingDAILY GRINDER: Nutter Heading to China
On Thursday, Mayor Nutter is going to China with an 11-person delegation that includes representatives with the Philadelphia Orchestra, Fox Chase Cancer Center, Drexel University, the airport and others. Though the large Asian country has become much-maligned during Election Seasons of recent past, that’s all over (for now), and the mayor will talk mutual...
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