Standing for the raise. Liz Navratil at the Star Tribune reports on the Minnesota Supreme Court upholding Minneapolis’ $15 minimum wage law: “The case revolved around the question of whether the Minnesota Fair Labor Standards Act prevents cities from setting their own, higher minimum wage rates than the state standards. Because employers would comply with the lower, state rate while paying the higher, city-mandated rate, there is no conflict, the court ruled.”
Progress on MD. Natalie Cierzan at the Minnesota Daily spoke to researchers at the U on improving the effects of Duchenne muscular dystrophy: “Researchers took a new approach to [improving skeletal muscle size] by targeting the blood vessels in the skeletal muscle, said Mayank Verma, a co-author of the study and a University graduate student. The study found that in muscles there was less damage, more stem cells, less scar tissue and the ability to produce more stable muscle fiber.“
Wage disparities at the nonprofit Mayo. Jeff Kiger at the Rochester Post Bulletin examines top salaries at the Mayo Clinic by reviewing their 990 form: “Mayo Clinic’s CEO salary increased by 36.9 percent from 2015 to 2018. The salary of Dr. Gianrico Farrugia, who became CEO in 2019, grew by 101 percent from 2015 to 2018. General raises for most Mayo Clinic employees ranged from 2 percent to 5 percent annually during that same time.”
Another school year, another plan. Jana Shortal at KARE-11 sits down with Minneapolis Public School Superintendent Ed Graff to discuss the Comprehensive Design Plan: “I think a piece I want to help people understand is if you are one of those kids who is not represented in those graduation rates and achievement rates, that’s unacceptable. If you are parent of that child it’s unacceptable and it’s incumbent on us to change that.”
Not a good look. Ryan Faircloth at the Star Tribune writes about a former policy associate in the administration of St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter who’s filed a disability complaint related to her tenure: “[Hope] Hoffman, who has spina bifida, wears a prosthetic on her right leg, which was amputated in 2018, and a brace on her left leg. Hoffman said the city declined to investigate when she raised these complaints as an employee. The city has since reversed course.“
In other news…
Bloomentum: “Presidential Hopeful Michael Bloomberg Heading To The Twin Cities This Week” [WCCO]
More dire dairy news: “Kemps to close Rochester milk facility” [Rochester Post Bulletin]
Amateurs: “Stranded Carolina snowmobilers rescued in Superior National Forest” [Duluth News Tribune]
Can’t repeat the past? … Why of course you can! “Everyone invited: ‘Great Gatsby’ copyright to end in 2021” [Star Tribune]
