{"id":70882,"date":"2024-07-19T13:57:49","date_gmt":"2024-07-19T17:57:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/?p=70882"},"modified":"2024-07-19T13:59:10","modified_gmt":"2024-07-19T17:59:10","slug":"spotlight-on-just-economics-building-a-more-just-and-sustainable-local-economy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thelaurelofasheville.com\/updatestage\/lifestyle\/spotlight-on-just-economics-building-a-more-just-and-sustainable-local-economy\/","title":{"rendered":"Spotlight On:<\/strong> Just Economics ~ Building a More Just and Sustainable Local Economy"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"

Just Economics WNC staff. From left: Sam Stites, Jen Hampton, Vicki Meath and Carmen Ybarra<\/p><\/div>\n

By Emma Castleberry<\/p>\n

The minimum wage in the state of North Carolina is $7.25 per hour\u2014the same as the federal minimum wage\u2014and has not changed since 2009. \u201cOur minimum wage has not gone up at all, whereas our housing costs have more than doubled,\u201d says Vicki Meath, executive director of Just Economics WNC.<\/p>\n

\"\"

2022 board chair Philip Cooper with his family at the 2023 Just Economics Annual Celebration<\/p><\/div>\n

The injustice of the current minimum wage is a core part of the work for Just Economics, which started as the Asheville-Buncombe Living Wage Campaign in 2000. In 2007, the group successfully passed a living wage ordinance that ensured city employees were paid a living wage (at that time, $10.86 per hour\u2014$3.61 more than the minimum wage). Also in 2007, Just Economics became the organizational home for the Living Wage Campaign, and over the years the organization expanded to tackle issues of affordable housing, better transit and other policy advocacy to support workers. \u201cOur work is dedicated to building a more just and sustainable local economy,\u201d says Meath. \u201cJust Economics is working directly with and for people who are struggling to make ends meet.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 2024 living wage rate in Buncombe County is $22.10 an hour. The living wage rate for rural WNC counties is $16.40 an hour. This wage is calculated as the minimum amount a worker must earn to afford basic necessities without public or private assistance. The living wage has become a new standard as the minimum wage has failed to keep up with rising costs. According to a 2021 study by the National Low Income Housing Coalition, a person working a minimum wage job full-time cannot afford a two-bedroom apartment anywhere in the US.<\/p>\n

Creating an environment where low and middle income people are able to meet their basic needs is ultimately beneficial for the local economy overall. \u201cWhen we put money in the hands of low and middle income people, we\u2019re spending that directly in our local economy,\u201d says Meath. \u201cWhereas people at the upper end of the income spectrum have more stagnant places to put their money\u2014in Swiss bank accounts and foreign investments and places that don\u2019t help our local economy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"

Fall 2023 graduating class of Voices for Economic Justice. Top row from left: Tyrone Greenlee, Ana Baranda, Bri Snyder, Brian Badescu, William Miller, Jack Paksoy, Carmen Ybarra. Bottom row from left: Jen Hampton, Vicki Meath, Whitley English.<\/p><\/div>\n

Since 2008, Just Economics WNC has certified more than 400 employers through its Living Wage Employer Certification Program, a voluntary opportunity for employers to demonstrate their commitment to an equitable local economy. These businesses are able to promote this policy to their customers, and they often see savings in the cost of recruitment and training and increased worker productivity. \u201cWhen your employees can put a roof over their head and food on their table without help or without a second or third job, they are able to be more productive when they\u2019re in the workplace,\u201d says Meath.<\/p>\n

Furthermore, an increase in living wage jobs means a decrease in pressure on social services and nonprofits. \u201cWhen people are self-sufficient, organizations and entities can do a better job serving the people that they need to serve,\u201d says Meath.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Jen Hampton, housing and wages organizer for Just Economics, speaking at a May Day Rally in 2024.<\/p><\/div>\n

Just Economics also collaborates to support other policies that benefit workers, such as public transportation infrastructure. Grassroots education and engagement are another major component of the organization\u2019s efforts. \u201cWe believe the best community change comes about when the people most impacted by the problems are involved and engaged in the solutions,\u201d says Meath. \u201cWe are intentional about making sure that we center the voices of people that are most impacted by the issues we\u2019re working to change.\u201d<\/p>\n

This commitment is modeled by the organization\u2019s Voices for Economic Justice program, an eight-week workshop series that imparts economics education and skills for community organizing with the goal of building leadership among low-wage workers and low-income individuals.<\/p>\n

Rachelle Sorensen-Cox, a renter who works in the service industry and uses public transit, participated in the program. \u201cThrough the lessons and exercises, I learned how to better articulate and advocate for those of us working on the front lines of the service industry in a popular, tourism-driven economy,\u201d she says. \u201cThe struggle has been really real at times and it is comforting to know that Just Economics has programs like the Tenants Rights Network and Better Buses Together.\u201d Sorensen-Cox also works for LaZoom Tours, a Certified Living Wage employer. \u201cI have seen changes implemented in real time because of advocacy,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

In addition to donations, Just Economics encourages the public to provide support around local policy advocacy. \u201cHelp us build positive pressure towards businesses and elected leaders to make sure we\u2019re building the framework for a more just and sustainable local economy,\u201d says Meath.<\/p>\n

Learn more at JustEconomicsWNC.org<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The minimum wage in the state of North Carolina is $7.25 per hour\u2014the same as the federal minimum wage\u2014and has not changed since 2009. \u201cOur minimum wage has not gone up at all, whereas our housing costs have more than doubled,\u201d says Vicki Meath, executive director of Just Economics WNC.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":70886,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[57,103],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-70882","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle","category-sustainability"],"yoast_head":"\nSpotlight On: Just Economics ~ Building a More Just and Sustainable Local Economy - The Laurel of Asheville<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The minimum wage in the state of North Carolina is $7.25 per hour\u2014the same as the federal minimum wage\u2014and has not changed since 2009. 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