LABOR/MANAGEMENT POLICY

The Minnesota Chamber strives to reduce employer costs by addressing workers' compensation issues, unemployment insurance, wage issues and other employer mandates.

The workers' compensation system remains under scrutiny as costs have increased since 2000 for a variety of reasons. However, medical costs seem to be the dominant factor. Medical costs now represent more than half of all loss costs within the workers' compensation system and are projected to be a major driver of future premium increases.

2012 Legislative Priorities

We will pursue opportunities through the Workers’ Compensation Advisory Council to make meaningful cost-saving changes to the workers’ compensation system in Minnesota.

We support changing Minnesota’s prevailing wage law so it conforms to parts of the federal Davis Bacon Act.

• Changing the calculation: The federal act defines the prevailing wage as the wage rate paid to the majority of those employed in a job classification. If there is not a majority paid at the same rate, then the average rate is used. State law should mimic this calculation.
• Overtime trigger: Under current law, overtime for prevailing wage projects is triggered at more than eight hours a day and 40 hours per week. Due to the nature of many prevailing wage jobs, it seems financially prudent to only trigger overtime at more than 40 hours per week.
  

Action Alerts

Click here to send action alerts as these issues advance at the Legislature.
Click here for Legislative Updates.
Click here to track priority legislation being lobbied at the Capitol.

Chair:Dave Baker, Baker Hospitalities Inc.
Staff: Ben Gerber, (651) 292-4663, bgerber@mnchamber.com, Twitter @MCC_bgerber/a>

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