All three City Commissioners attended the Workshop. Compensating employees based on regulation rather than the free market reduces the ability of employers to stimulate improved performance through higher wages. The free market system and a strong local economy, combined with education and long-term skill development, provide the most effective way to raise wages and benefits for the workforce. The majority of low-wage workers are not working forty hours per week. They have not held the same job for the last four years.
Most workers earning low-wages are young, single and live with their parents.
The Flinthills Living Wage Coalition and MAPJ are political organizations trying to bring their liberal views to Manhattan. They have done well, they control the City Commission and the School Board.