WVCBP in the News

September 4, 2014 by Sean O'Leary
National Protests Again Target Minimum Wage

West Virginia Metro News -Fast food workers across the United States took to the streets on Thursday to again call–en masse–for an increase to the federal minimum wage. ReadSean O'Leary, fiscal policy analyst for the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy, said the protests were all people who simply want livable wages."The real question…

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September 1, 2014 by Ted Boettner
Labor Leaders See Signs of Hope

Charleston Gazette - Last year, union membership for all wage and salary workers held steady at 11.3 percent. Labor leaders hope that's one sign that a decades-long decline in union membership may be slowing or stopping. Read"The national labor movement is holding its own right now. We haven't seen significant dropoffs in membership over the…

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August 29, 2014 by Sean O'Leary
Social Security Means $6 Billion-Plus a Year for West Virginians

West Virginia Public News Service - At the ripe old age of 79, Social Security is helping West Virginia residents and the economy. ReadWhile pensions have changed, jobs have been lost and homes have lost equity, a quarter of folks in the state rely on Social Security benefits. As the program celebrates another birthday, federal…

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August 27, 2014 by Ted Boettner
Abundant Coal May Have ‘Cursed’ the Appalachian Economy

Washington Post - As Chico Harlan writes, the economy of the central Appalachian region has been tied to the highs and lows of the coal industry for decades. ReadHarlan's piece raises the question of whether West Virginia miners are better off moving away from the troubled local coal mining industry — and certainly some are…

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August 24, 2014 by Ted Boettner
AARP Among Those Backing a New Way to Save for Retirement

Charleston Gazette - Gaylene Miller, AARP West Virginia state director, would like to see greater access to affordable workplace retirement plans for all West Virginians. ReadWest Virginia is one of 12 states to dabble with the idea of implementing some form of employee retirement savings program for private workers lacking a workplace retirement plan."We are…

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August 15, 2014 by Ted Boettner
West Virginia Wives are Bringing Home the Bacon

West Virginia wives bring in more of their families' income than wives in all but one other state — according to a recent study as published in the Charleston Gazette. ReadIn the Mountain State, women provided 50.1 percent of their families' income, according to the July 29 study from the University of New Hampshire Carsey…

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August 13, 2014 by Ted Boettner
A Healthier Outlook as Medicare Celebrates 49 Years

West Virginia Public News Service, Logan Banner - Medicare is now 49 years old, and there are some signs that fears about the program's future may be easing. ReadThe influx of baby boomers reaching retirement age and increasing medical costs had lawmakers looking for options to prevent the program from going bankrupt. But Sam Burnett,…

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